Taking A Chance
by Walker Witch
Summary: Daryl Dixon had a hard life. He grew up with alcoholic parents, an abusive father and a crazy brother. Nothing in his life had ever been easy. The only good thing he had was his best friend from childhood, Rick Grimes. When Rick asked him to be his best man at his wedding, Daryl instantly said yes. His life was never the same after as what happened in Vegas, did not stay in Vegas.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

Daryl shifted his body for what felt like the hundredth time as he sat on one of the hard, really uncomfortable seats that Atlanta International Airport had at their departure gates. This was the last place he ever expected to be. He was not a traveling type of guy, nor had he ever been on any type of vacation before in all his thirty-seven years, but here he was getting ready to get on a plane and fly to of all places…Las Vegas.

There was only one person in the entire world that could get him to do this…his best friend Rick Grimes. Rick was getting married and he wanted Daryl there. The only problem was that Rick and his fiancé, Michonne decided to take their vows in the last place on earth that Daryl would ever want to go. He hated busy cities, crowds of people that went there and spending money he simply didn't have.

He still did not understand why they just could not have just gone down to the courthouse to get it done. That was the most logical way to him. Even though they did not want a big fancy wedding, Michonne told him they still wanted to have some fun. Apparently they consider Las Vegas fun… he certainly did not.

Daryl and Rick had been best friends since grade school and when Rick had asked him to stand up for him at the wedding, the answer was an immediate yes, but that was also before he knew what that entailed. Now here he was at the airport getting ride to fly to Vegas where they already where. Daryl definitely preferred to keep his feet firmly on the ground, but there was no time to drive to Nevada. It was simply too far.

He glanced down at his cheap watch on his wrist and saw that he still had about twenty minutes before the plane boarded. Daryl took a deep breath. This wasn't just his first time flying, hell it was the first time he was ever leaving Georgia. Going to Las Vegas was a big leap for him and completely took him out of his comfort zone. Daryl would have been happy just to stay here at home in Georgia, but his two good friends had to go and mess that up.

They were two people that you never would have thought belonged together, but they did. Rick was the handsome southern white cop with wavy hair and smiling blue eyes, while Michonne was a local storeowner with long black dread locks and beautiful ebony skin. They didn't seem like a good match, when in reality they were perfect for each other. Her fun personality and naturally happy demeanor even drew Daryl to her. She became the little sister he never had.

She was the rock that they both leaned on when Rick's parent's died within less than a month of each other. First Mrs. Grimes lost her battle with cancer, then Mr. G shortly after from a sudden heart attack. It devastated the two of them, but Michonne helped them through it. She knew that Daryl was hurting just as bad as Rick was and behind his few words and stony expressions hid a grieving man.

Yeah, Daryl would do anything for them even if it meant flying to fucking Las Vegas.

Michonne had explained to him what he needed to expect at the airport. He had already checked in and made it through security without a problem. It was a good thing she reminded him to leave the pocket knife he always carried at home. Then he found the correct gate that plane was leaving from, so far so good, but he was still nervous about going up in that big metal tube with wings. He'd give anything to be back on his old Harley, instead of getting ready to be thirty thousand feet in the air.

The beat-up black duffle bag that he used to pack his clothes in was sitting on the floor next to his right foot. He had no idea what to bring for the three days they were to be there. He threw what decent clothes he had into the bag and that was not much, but he didn't check it with the airlines. He kept it with himself not trusting them at all. He owned too little to chance anything of his being lost.

Daryl didn't understand why after the wedding they couldn't just come right back home to Georgia, but Rick and Michonne wanted to make this into a small vacation and they wanted him there. This was their honeymoon, not his, yet they wanted him to stay. He knew he was going to be nothing but a third wheel, but they asked, so he was staying.

The happy couple was taking care of his hotel expenses, but he insisted on paying for the flight even though it took a big chunk out of his measly savings account. He would just have to put off getting that new motorcycle for a little while longer. His was on its last legs and no matter how much he fixed it something was always breaking down on it.

Daryl leaned forward in the seat and looked down at his worn boots. Maybe he should have cleaned them up for the trip. There was still mud on them from the rainstorm the other night. This was shit he never had to think about before and it annoyed him that he was clueless about traveling. At least his jeans were clean and his shirt had sleeves. If he was home, his every day pants usually had a knee ripped out and the shirts had the sleeves cut off. The summer was just too damn hot in Georgia for sleeves.

Even though he wasn't looking forward to this trip, a small part of him was exited. The Dixon family had never taken anything that resembled a vacation, never dressed up or even left the state Georgia. He never knew his grandparents, but his mother and father and assorted other relatives were all Georgia born and bred. They all stayed put in the Peach State, no one having the money to go any further. Dixon's never did anything but drink and fight. They were always from the wrong side of town and were nothing but pure trouble.

The only time he ever got to experience anything fun as a kid was when Rick's parents would invite him along. The Grimes' took better care of him than his own parents ever did.

Daryl checked his watch again and saw it was close to boarding. He felt his nerves start to take over as he realized it was almost time to leave. God, he'd kill for a cigarette right now. He was still hunched over on the seat not daring to look out the big glass windows that overlooked the planes and runways. Staring at the floor wasn't helping to settle his anxiety, so he closed his eyes instead to try and calm himself.

" _Stop being such a pussy_ ," he said under his breath.

When he finally opened his eyes there was a pair of red high heels standing right in front of him. Daryl slowly looked up taking in the long shapely legs that were attached to the shoes and it got better as he saw the curvaceous body that was wrapped in a tight black dress. After he lingered on her bountiful breasts, he finally looked up into her face and saw she was an absolute knockout. Her long black hair was set in big stylish curls and sharply contrasted her emerald green eyes. She was one hot babe and from the look she was giving him, she was pissed off too.

"What?" he growled. All he was doing was sitting there minding his own business and she had no reason to be looking at him that way.

"You get a good enough look or would you like me to turn around so you could check out my ass too?" she snapped at him.

"Listen lady, I'm just sitting here doing nothing and you stopped in front of me. I just looked to see who it was. Do you want something or not?" he asked. Daryl was trying to keep it cool, but this woman was certainly doing her best to piss him off. He didn't need that now. He had enough shit to deal with without her contributing to it.

"Are you Daryl Dixon?" the knockout asked.

"Yeah, how do you know that?" How did this woman know who he was? He didn't know anyone in Atlanta and no one knew he was at the airport except Rick and Michonne. What was going on?

She sat down across from him in a vacant seat crossing her long legs. Her designer carry-on bag was next to her along with her Coach handbag. "I'm Gabrielle… Michonne's friend."

Daryl racked his brain. Was he supposed to know her? Finally a vague memory surfaced of Rick telling him that Michonne had her best friend joining them too. He had forgotten that. Just his luck it looked like she was on the same flight as he was. Why didn't Rick tell him that this friend was such a bitch?

"Going for the wedding?" he asked trying to be friendly.

"Yes. Of course I am," she retorted. "Why they picked a place as tacky as Las Vegas is beyond me. I don't know what Michonne was thinking," she said clearly with an attitude. Gabrielle took her phone out of her purse and started to scroll through it.

He bit his tongue before he could tell her if she didn't like it, she should have stayed home. He wasn't happy about going either, but here he was supporting his friends. "How did you know it was me?"

Gabrielle held up an annoying finger indicating he was to wait a second. Daryl's nerves quickly turned to anger. She was treating him like he was below her and while he may be only a lowly redneck mechanic, little Miss Attitude was no better than he was.

Finally, she turned the phone around to face him. It was a picture of him and Rick from a few months back when they were heading out to a bar with Michonne to celebrate Rick's birthday. "Michonne sent me this so I would recognize you. It was pretty easy."

Daryl looked exactly like she expected him to. Michonne had described Rick's best friend in detail along with sending her the photo. He had a rugged face that hadn't seen a shave in a long time, and while his cheeks had more scruff than beard, he had a nicely filled in goatee. His dark brown hair wasn't real long, but it looked like it was well over his collar and covered his ears, except for the tops that peaked through his hair. It was slightly messy, but damn, it so suited him. Long bangs partially covered his eyes, but when he brushed them out of the way, his piercing blue eyes startled her for a second, but she had quickly recovered. When she originally saw his photo, her pulse did a quick acceleration and now was no different, in fact she saw a gorgeous guy. He was so her type…well make that her old type. She didn't date down home redneck guys any more.

The one thing that Michonne did not mention was his voice. It was low and gravelly and very sexy. She did not want to find herself attracted to him, but she was. She really was. It made her nervous, so she did what she usually did in situations like this and she overcompensated by being a bitch.

Gabrielle looked over the top of her phone at him. Even if she had not recognized Daryl, she would have guessed it was him. He had that irresistible bad boy look going on that Michonne had warned her about. She even mentioned the motorcycle he drove and while it certainly piqued her curiosity, she didn't let on to her friend that it did. Nope, she wanted a man that could wine and dine her in the best restaurants that Atlanta had to offer and that didn't mean dinner at the Waffle House. She had been there, done that and was not going back. She still refused to eat waffles to this day.

She saw the way Daryl was fidgeting in the seat and would bet anything that he had never flown before. She was an old pro. He was probably a virgin. That thought made a giggle escape that she quickly covered.

Nope. She was not going to finish that thought. Sex and Daryl Dixon were two things she was not going to even think about, even though she felt a quick surge of excitement at that idea. She had given up men like him a longtime ago. Too many of her dating years had been with good looking bad boys that took advantage of her time after time. Sure they were the guys that always made her heart race and body tingle, but she had vowed never to get involved with one again once she moved to Atlanta. Now all she dated was white collar professionals, doctors and men that knew the difference between a bottle of Château Margaux and Dom Perignon.

She was no longer the tall gangly teen that everyone called Gabby from Senoia, but now she was Gabrielle the stunning woman who had filled out in all right places and who turned heads everywhere she went. She had a great downtown condo overlooking the city and was working her way up the ladder at Goodman and Sheppard, the premier marketing company in Atlanta.

Michonne had befriended her in junior high as the two lonely girls gravitated together and became inseparable. They both attended the same college with Gabby majoring in marketing and Michonne got her degree in finance. Gabby wanted to conquer the world, while Michonne was just looking to be able to run her own business.

They were each successful in their own rights and remained close all these years later. Gabby's long hours at work and Michonne's move to Parkvale to open her bookstore cafe a few years ago kept them apart more than they would have liked, but kept in touch with emails, texting and even an occasional Skype session.

As much as she loved Michonne, Gabrielle was also quite jealous of her too. Gabby had yet to find a man that she wanted to settle down with and marry, unlike Michonne who met Rick two years ago. He was a deputy sheriff in the town where she opened the Tattered Cover Books and Café. Morning coffee runs to the café led to a few dates and within six months they were living together. Last month Rick proposed and neither of them wanted to wait. Now the happy couple and their two closest friends were all off to Las Vegas for the wedding. Rick and Michonne had arrived a day early to work out the details.

The loudspeaker finally announced the start of the boarding for the flight. Gabrielle was ready to get going and drown herself in a glass or two of champagne once her shapely butt hit her assigned seat. She ignored the long message that they were saying as she had heard the boarding system explained a hundred times.

Her eyes strayed to Daryl and she saw he was looking at his boarding pass with a confused look. "Got a problem?" she asked sounding bored.

"What does boarding in groups mean? I have no idea what group I'm in." He hated looking stupid, but all this was all brand new to him.

"Let me see your boarding pass," Gabrielle said and snatched the piece of paper he held out to her. She easily found the answer. "See right here, that's your group. You board when they call group two."

"What group are you in?" Daryl asked.

The loudspeaker interrupted them announcing the boarding of all Sky Club members and first class passengers.

Gabrielle flashed him a fake smile. "That's me…first class. See you in Vegas." He watched her wheel her fancy piece of luggage away from him as she headed toward the door that led to the plane.

Daryl looked around and realized that most of the men at the gate were looking at her ass as she walked away in that tight dress and mile high heels. She certainly knew what she was doing and Daryl wondered how she and Michonne could be friends. He had never met two more opposite people in his life. He didn't think he had ever seen his friend's fiancé in a dress and heels. Jeans were more her style. Michonne was one of the nicest people he had ever met and her friend was rude, aggravating and simply a bitch. This was going to be a strange few days he realized.

He sat back down in the seat while he waited for them to call his group. It didn't take long and Daryl followed the lengthy line of people onto the plane. When he made that step from the ramp into the actual aircraft, he felt his hands start to sweat. It was a narrow area and the flight attendant welcomed him with a smile and a cheery hello. He told her his seat number and she pointed him in the right direction. He did a quick glance to his left and saw larger more comfortable seats than those to his right where he was headed. It didn't get past him that he saw Gabrielle's red high heel bouncing lightly in the air and a glass of champagne in her manicured hand. Must be nice.

No matter how hot she was, she was so far out of his league she might as be on another planet. Not to mention he didn't go for snotty bitches either. These next few days should prove very interesting at the least.

Daryl made his way down the narrow aisle and found his seat by the window. He tossed his duffle under the seat in front of him, plopped down in his and buckled up. This was going to be the longest four or so hours of his life.

* * *

 **A/N - Welcome to my new story " _Taking a Chance_." It's completely AU, so it's my first departure from anything TWD. Daryl's about to fly off into the unknown and he's in for a lot of surprises. I'm looking forward to hear what everyone thinks as this story unfolds. **

**Happy Reading!**

 **Walker Witch**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

When the flight took off it really wasn't as bad as Daryl expected it to be. The takeoff down the runway was a bit intimidating, but he survived it without getting too nervous. It was just the weirdest thing to him to be flying through the clouds he saw whipping by outside the window. He knew thousands of people flew every day, but it was still quite unnerving for him. The guy in the seat next to him was engrossed in his laptop, so Daryl was happy to be left alone. He closed his eyes to try to relax and think. He always did his best thinking while out riding. The roar of the motorcycle engine helped to block out everything around him, so he could simply concentrate on the road and what was running through his head on that day. Today, instead of the loud rumble from his bike, it was the quiet hum of a jet engine right outside his window.

Rick was going to owe him big time for this, but then again his friend helped him more times than he could count. Daryl had left home at sixteen after a very violent fight with his drunken father, and moved in with the Grimes family until he graduated high school. He had no place else to go as his older brother, Merle was doing a stint in jail. Mrs. Grimes was adamant that he needed to stay in school and he appreciated that she cared enough about him and his future. No one in his family ever did, especially after his mother had died when he was just eight years old.

The last year and a half that he lived with the Grimes', he was able to see what a real family was like. They treated him like one of their own and he saw how a father was supposed to treat his son. It sure didn't involve screaming at him, calling him horrible names or beating him bloody.

All these years later, it still got to him. He was thirty-seven years old and he still hated his old man as much as the day he left with only the ragged clothes on his back.

Once he finished school, he moved out of the Grimes house to live with his older brother Merle who was now out of jail. Mrs. G wanted him to stay, but he knew he had already imposed on them enough. His brother was bad news, but he was all the family Daryl had left. Living with his brother lasted for more years than it should have. They bounced from place to place never settling down in any one town for long.

Daryl remembered the big fight they had almost a year ago. His frustration with Merle had been growing and growing and he had been putting up with him for the better part of over twenty years. Merle's inability to keep his mouth shut and to say and do the most inappropriate things had finally gotten to Daryl. His older brother was nothing short of a complete embarrassment. That day ended up with punches thrown, blood flying and words said that could never be taken back.

Daryl quickly packed up his stuff, which sadly was not a lot from the apartment that his paychecks usually paid for and left without looking back. One night in Rick and Michonne's spare room ended up being almost three months. They refused his offer to pay them rent and instead wanted him to save for place of his own. Eight months ago he moved into his own apartment after saving for the first and last month's rent and the deposit. It was small, but it was his. He picked up some used mismatched furniture to help furnish it, and along with some pieces that Rick had left over from his parents place. Daryl had his first solo apartment.

And he loved it.

Yeah, he owed Rick more than he could ever repay and that's why he was flying to Las Vegas to help his best friend get married. Hell, Rick was really more of a brother to him than friend. Rick never would have put him through the grief that Merle did.

Daryl closed his eyes and tried to take a nap as the plane took him closer and closer to Las Vegas. As much as he didn't want to go, seeing all of the bright lights and fun that Vegas had to offer was starting to grow on him. This was a done deal, so he had to start finding the bright side about going. Daryl chuckled to himself, he was definitely more of a glass half empty type of guy, so this was going to be hard for him, but he was ready to try. He soon found himself drifting off with his head resting against the window.

He had no idea how long he had been asleep when the plane started to shake badly and it suddenly woke him up. "What the hell?" he said as he immediately came awake.

"Guess we are hitting some turbulence," the guy next to him said.

"Helluva way to wake up," Daryl muttered.

The pilot immediately came on over the loud speaker reminding everyone to have their seatbelts fastened and apologized for the rough air. Just as he finished speaking the plane suddenly dropped for about ten long seconds before finally leveling out. It scared Daryl to death. He took a quick panicked look around and saw that he wasn't the only one. Even the guy next to him looked really worried.

"What the fuck was that?" Daryl said to no one in particular. It felt like the plane had briefly fallen from the sky.

"That was not good," his seatmate admitted. "I fly all the time, but that isn't supposed to happen."

There was a constant low murmur of voices throughout the plane as the rough air continued. The aircraft didn't drop again, but it was rocking back and forth pretty bad. This was not the easy flight Michonne told him he would have. If this was how flying was, he was never doing this again.

Eventually, the ride smoothed out and the pilot's voice flowed throughout the plane. He once again apologized for the turbulent ride. "Folks, it seems that we are also having a mechanical issue that needs to be addressed. We'll be landing in Denver to see if we can get it sorted out. We have emergency clearance to land in about twenty minutes. Flight attendants please prepare the cabin for immediate arrival."

That didn't sound good to Daryl at all. No fucking way. He realized he was literally white knuckling it when he looked down at his hands that were gripping the arm rests. He forced himself to relax his grip as he felt the plane descending, but in a much more controlled fashion than before. There was absolute silence by the passengers as they approached the runway. Once the wheels safely touched down on the asphalt, there was a loud cheer by everyone in the plane.

Daryl finally let out a loud sigh of relief. They taxied to a gate, but the passengers were to stay on the plane. Since it was a mechanical issue, they were trying to fix it without letting the passengers off and it became a long waiting game. After almost two hours, the pilot came back on to let them know that the the gate about getting rebooked on another flight.

Daryl's first time flying was turning into a nightmare. He made his way slowly out of the plane, behind a long line of people. He noticed Gabrielle was already talking to an agent and he could see that she wasn't happy. Their eyes happened to meet and she waved at him to come over.

"We have a problem," she told him. They can't get me on a flight until eight o'clock tomorrow night. Apparently everything else is booked for the earlier flights. If they can't get me out, they can't get you out either. The wedding is at six. What the hell are we going to do?" she asked him.

This was not good news, but he didn't know why it was ending up in his lap. She certainly had more experience traveling than he did, couldn't she come up with a solution? "Another airline?" he suggested.

"Don't you think I've tried that?" she snapped at him.

Once again, her attitude was pissing him off. "How long of a drive is it to Vegas?" he asked the gate agent.

"Let me check," the agent offered. After some typing and checking her computer monitor, she told them it was a twelve to thirteen hour drive.

That was long, but doable and it was music to his ears. "Let's drive," he suggested to Gabrielle. Daryl was more than happy not to get back onto a plane again. Driving was definitely up his alley.

"Drive, really?" she asked with a definite sarcastic tone.

"Unless you have another option, it's all I got. It's about twelve hours give or take. We could be there by late morning," he told her. "We can't miss the wedding."

"Alright. We'll get a rental, but you're doing all the driving," she told him. Gabrielle walked away from the counter without even thanking the agent for her help.

Daryl turned and rolled his eyes at the agent and said thank you. He was rewarded with a warm smile and a good luck from her. He needed it.

He had to jog to catch up to Gabrielle and neither of them talked as they made their way to the car rental desks. Daryl wasn't paying attention since Gabrielle was doing all of the talking until it came time to give them a credit card.

"Your card or mine?" she asked Daryl.

"Card?"

"Credit card. Yours or mine," she repeated.

"Since I ain't got one, yours," he told her.

Gabrielle dug her American Express card out of her wallet and handed it over to the agent. "Everyone has a credit card."

"Well I sure as hell don't. If I can't pay cash, I don't buy it." Daryl knew she was subtly putting him down. Nothing pissed him off more than people who though they were better than he was. This was going to be a long drive if she kept this up.

The rest of the paperwork was completed and both of their driver's licenses were recorded. The agent explained where they were to pick up the car and gave them a map to help them on the drive.

"Let's go," Daryl said as he grabbed the keys off the counter.

"I need to get my luggage first," Gabrielle told him.

"That ain't it?" Daryl asked pointing at her carry on.

"Of course not. I checked the rest of it. We need to get them from baggage claim."

Them? Did she say them? "How many bags you got?" This was only a three day trip, right?

"Three," she said daring him to say anything.

Daryl didn't respond, but simply rolled his eyes. "C'mon Princess, let's get your shit so we can get outta here."

"Do not call me Princess, my name is Gabrielle… Gabrielle Parsons," she demanded as they walked towards the luggage carousel.

"This is gonna be a long drive," he muttered under his breath. "A fuckin' long drive."

When they reached baggage claim, Gabrielle's bags were the last one circling on the carousel. They were a perfect matched set along to her carry-on bag. Daryl pulled them off the belt when he saw that she had no intention of doing so. Gabrielle raised the handle of the smaller bag of the bags and started off. That's when Daryl realized he was going to be her personal luggage carrier along with his own duffle bag. She didn't even ask for help, she just left him with her luggage.

The southern gentleman in him would have helped her anyway, but it would have been nice for her to at least ask him. He wanted to tell her where to shove her ridiculous designer luggage, but ultimately he kept his mouth shut as the car was booked under her credit card and without that he would have to miss the wedding. There was no way he was going to miss his best friend get hitched.

It was going to be a long drive with him and the Princess. He hoped they survived the trip in one piece, but he was highly doubtful.

* * *

 **A/N - love all the new readers and the comments/reviews. Thank you everyone!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Daryl, Gabrielle and all of her luggage made the trip on the shuttle bus to the car rental lot. They walked around with Daryl dealing with most of the bags until they found the parking space assigned to their car. He was about fed up.

"Lexus? You rented us a Lexus?" Daryl exclaimed. "What the hell is that costing us?"

The black luxury car was going to be a dream to drive, but a Ford would have worked just as well and been more in line with his non-existent budget. Gabrielle was certainly a piece of work. That's what he got for not paying attention to her at the counter.

"Nothing extra. Just calm down," she said rolling her eyes. "My company travels a lot so we get automatic upgrades with Hertz, so don't go getting all upset. It's on my card anyway," Gabrielle explained.

"I'll be paying my share of this, don't you forget to tell me what I owe ya," he told her while he filled the trunk with her suitcases. She could have told him this and saved him the trouble of getting aggravated.

"Whatever," she said over her shoulder as she got into the car.

"Whatever," he mimicked as he tried to get the last of the luggage in the trunk. Daryl wondered again how this bitch could be friends with someone as awesome as Michonne. She didn't treat him like he was dirt under her shoe. They were on equal terms like all people should be, rich or not. City or country.

Daryl settled himself behind the wheel and looked everything over so he was familiar with the controls. Being a mechanic, he drove a lot of different cars so he was able to figure everything out fairly quickly. Now they just had to get the directions down before they headed out.

"Hey Princess," he said to Gabrielle. "Why don't you call Michonne and let her know what's going on. They'll be expecting us soon and that ain't happening. "

"That's a good idea," she replied and grabbed her phone out of her bag. Before she started to dial, she turned to him. "Stop calling me Princess."

Daryl flashed her a sexy smile that she felt all the way to her toes. "Sure Princess, whatever you say." He heard her mumble 'dick' under her breath and he laughed. It was good knowing he could get to her.

While Gabrielle talked to Michonne and Rick, he spread the map out against the steering wheel. They basically had to take Interstate 70 through Colorado and most of Utah and then pick up Interstate 15 into Nevada and Las Vegas. It looked pretty straight forward. He looked at his watch and saw that it was six thirty in the evening. It was going to be a long night of driving.

Daryl folded up the map and put it in the pocket on the side of the door as Gabrielle was finishing her call to Michonne. "I know, but it's the only option. No. No! Do not push back the wedding, we will be there," Gabrielle assured her friend. "Country boy here is driving so I'm just going sit here and relax." Gabrielle was quiet for a moment and Daryl heard Michonne's voice but couldn't make out the words.

"Michonne, of course I am being nice to him. We're going to have a lovely drive. See you in the morning. Bye. Bye," Gabrielle said. Daryl was certain that Michonne was still talking when she hung up.

He just shook his head. "What?" Gabrielle asked.

"Me and you have two different definitions of what being nice is, Princess."

"Hmmph. Shouldn't you be driving?" she snapped. Why did he make her be such a bitch? She couldn't relax around him and that annoyed her.

Daryl pulled out of the parking spot and found his way out of the airport. He could already tell that the car drove beautifully. However, before he was going to get onto the highway he had a stop to make and it didn't take him long to find what he was looking for.

"Why are you pulling in here?" Gabrielle asked.

"We need supplies. Gonna be a long night," Daryl told her pulling into a parking spot in from of a convenience store.

"Oh, that's a good idea."

Daryl got out of the car first and waited by the front door of the store for Gabrielle to join him, and then he remotely locked the car. He held the door open for her as she sashayed past him. She was still dressed to kill and he was, well just dressed.

Once they were inside, he went in one direction and she went another, but he always knew where she was. Daryl always had a keen sense of knowing what was going on all around him. He grabbed a couple cans of Red Bull along with a two packages of beef jerky. He added a large black coffee and headed to the register. He had the cashier add in two packs of cigarettes and he turned to see if Gabrielle was ready.

"Shit," he cursed under his breath. Gabrielle had an arm full of food, but some asshole had his hand on her shoulder, not letting her pass. He strutted over like he didn't have a care in the world. "Dude, take you hand off my girl…Now." His tone was low and deadly.

"You're with this guy? Seriously?" the guy said.

"Yes, I am. Now get out of my way," Gabrielle hissed feeling much more confident with Daryl there. "Can you take these, Hon," she purred as she dumped all of her food and drinks into Daryl's arms.

He looked at all the junk food she had given him and wondered how someone with her shape could eat all of this. He figured she ate salads and shit like that. He turned and glared at the guy one more time and felt Gabrielle put her hand into his back pocket as if she were his girlfriend. Together they walked to the checkout counter and Daryl put everything on the counter.

The clerk was ringing it up and Daryl smiled at Gabrielle as he leaned over to whisper in her ear. "Since your hand in still grabbing my ass, can you get my wallet out for me? I need to pay the man."

Gabrielle kicked herself for not removing her hand from his pocket sooner. She had forgotten that this was just for show as she was enjoying her hand touching him that way. Slowly she removed the worn wallet and handed it to Daryl with a smile. "Here you go, Babe," she purred handing it to him.

Daryl pulled the cash out that he needed and handed it over to the cashier. The guy made change and handed him the bag with their food and his coffee. "Dude, you are so lucky," he said openly gawking at Gabrielle.

"You have no idea," Daryl laughed. He put a hand on Gabrielle's back and they headed for the car. He opened the door for her and watched as Gabrielle slid her long legs into the car. He put the coffee on the top of the car and rummaged through the bag before handing it to her. He had the two packs of cigarettes he bought in his hand. Daryl tossed one onto the backseat and the other went into his shirt pocket after he opened it and took one out. He hadn't had a smoke since heading into the airport in Atlanta. He was dying for one.

Daryl leaned against the car as he inhaled that first drag and instantly felt better. Gabrielle popped her head out of the car. "You smoke?" she asked.

"Yep" was all he said as he continued to enjoy the cigarette.

"You're not smoking in this car!" Gabrielle snapped at him.

"I'm not in the damn car. Give me a fuckin' break Princess." He was already being considerate by smoking where he was, could she just shut up for once? Not to mention he saved her pretty little ass in the store and never even got a thank you for that.

Gabrielle sat in the car sipping her soda and wondered what was wrong with her. She knew that she was treating Daryl horribly, but she just could not help it. He had not done a single thing wrong to her, except call her Princess and the sad thing was she was acting like a spoiled princess. He made her nervous by just being him. She had a feeling that with him what you saw was what you got, unlike the men she was used to dealing with who were always trying to be more than they actually were.

She knew she was attracted to him, but she was fighting it. Men like Daryl were part of a past that that Gabrielle was desperately trying to leave behind. She was trying to prove that she belonged in the big leagues even though she came from small town roots.

She looked up at him standing outside her door and saw a man that she knew only a little about, but was starting to become quite curious to know more. Some unknown feeling told her that he was strong in what he believed in, yet vulnerable at the same time. Michonne didn't say anything about his past, yet Gabrielle knew there was a complicate story behind it. She sensed there was more going on behind those serious blue eyes than he showed.

The only way she could protect herself was to keep him far, far away from her heart and that meant Gabrielle the Bitch was all he would see. She had plans for her life and it didn't include a redneck country boy. She had left that world behind years ago.

Daryl closed Gabrielle's door a bit harder than he intended to. He saw her jump a little in her seat and flashed h him a dirty look. How was he to know that she was not paying attention?

It was time to get this trip going. It was now seven o'clock. Twelve straight hours would be seven in the morning, but Daryl knew he would not be able to drive all night without a break. He planned on getting there sometime late morning. That was plenty of time to get there for the wedding.

He got into the car with his coffee and started the engine without looking over at Gabrielle. Just as he backed out of the parking spot and started to head out, she said, "Wait."

"What did you forget something?" he asked her. This was a hell of a time to stop him as they were right in the middle of the parking lot blocking everything.

"Yes, I did. Umm…thank you…for helping me in there. I appreciated it," she said to him softly.

Gabrielle's thanks surprised him. He wasn't expecting it. "No problem. I don't appreciate men that don't understand the word no." He was rewarded with a genuine smile from Gabrielle that affected him more than he wanted to admit.

Daryl pulled the car out of the lot and headed towards the interstate. Since they seemed like they were on speaking terms, he brought up the subject of the flight. "Was that normal all that shaking and dropping the plane did?"

"Absolutely not! I've experienced turbulence before in the air, but nothing like that."

"Makes me not wanna get back on one," Daryl told her.

"That was your first time flying?"

"Yep."

"Then I don't blame you, but that was not normal," Gabrielle said trying to explain. They talked for a little while longer with Gabrielle holding up most of the conversation with stories about other flights she had been on.

Outside of Denver they hit a lot of construction delays that they weren't expecting and it slowed them down. The conversation lulled as the sun set and darkness started to surround them. Daryl was driving non-stop as they had hundreds of miles to cover in a short period of time.

When they got to the Eisenhower Tunnel was a unique unexpected experience for him. He had never been in any type of tunnel before, and this one was sixty miles long. It was a dark and quite unsettling, and he wasn't sure that he ever wanted to repeat going through it again.

Gabrielle was sound asleep during this and he was glad she didn't see his nervousness. Only when he exited the tunnel into the night sky did he finally relax. He ate some more of his jerky and washed it down with one of the Red Bulls he had bought. He needed to stay awake.

Living in Georgia did not prepare him for the Rocky Mountains. Sure he had heard of them, but driving through that steep terrain in the dark was another new experience for him. The boring countryside of Georgia was looking better and better every mile he drove.

Daryl did a lot of thinking in the quiet of the night. It seemed like he and Gabrielle had come to some sort of unspoken understanding. She was not snapping at him anymore and he stopped calling her Princess, even though it did suit her perfectly. The miles flew by, but Daryl found the driving monotonous. He wished he was on his bike instead of in a car. Only the quiet rumble of the tires on the pavement could be heard. He kept the radio off to so not to wake up her up.

Daryl was still trying to figure her out. If she wasn't Michonne's best friend, he would have simply written her off and be glad not to have anything to do with her. He may not be the most educated or have only a few dollars to his name or just be a simple country guy, but he knew better than to talk down to people unless they deserved it. He didn't deserve it.

Michonne must see something in her or maybe he just brought out her bad side, but he still couldn't fathom why they were friends. Michonne was one on the nicest people he had ever met. She knew his whole story and didn't treat him any different because he grew up on the wrong side of the tracks. She treated him as an equal. Hell, he felt like she was his little sister and he would do anything she needed.

Because of her and Rick, he was putting up with Gabrielle even though once they started driving she did mellow out. Daryl glanced over at her. Her head was resting against the window as she slept. Her wavy black hair was framing her face. She sure was a knockout. She was as hot as those models he saw in magazines and on TV. She as not only gorgeous, but she had body that didn't stop.

Daryl noticed that her short dress had ridden up so that he could see the tops of her thighs. Just thinking about what lay beyond was enough to get his body to react. His pants started to get uncomfortable as his erection grew. "Good going asshole," he said to himself. "Now you got yourself a boner, thinking about the princess." His mouth lifted in a small smile. He was a guy after all and even though she really was a bitch to him, she was a really hot bitch.

It was approaching eleven o'clock and the traffic on the road had really thinned out. Daryl started to notice that the car wasn't driving as smoothly as it had. Maybe it was his mechanics intuition, but he knew something was going on. He just passed a sign that told him the next town of Glenwood Springs was coming up in a mile. The car hadn't gone much further when the dash board started to light up.

"Fuck!" Daryl exclaimed. All of the emergency lights that let the driver know something was wrong were lit up and the car was now losing power.

"What?" asked a sleepy Gabrielle.

"Is there a fuckin' black cloud over us or what? This car is about to die on us," he said between clenched teeth. Could nothing go right for them?

Gabrielle instantly sat up. "Please tell me you are joking?"

"Nope. Look at this dash? And the car is driving really badly. We should be coming up to an exit soon. I saw a sign a little ways back. I'm getting off there if we make it," Daryl told her.

While luck was not with them that day, it did let them get off the highway and into the parking lot of a motel that was at the base of the exit. There the car completely died. Daryl hit his hand on the steering wheel in frustration.

"What do we do now?" asked Gabrielle.

"Call the rental company, tell them their car just fuckin' broke down on us and we need a new one," Daryl told her. "I need a cigarette."

He got out of the car and immediately lit up. Truth be told he need the smoke hours ago, but held on so they could get as many miles under their belt as possible. As he smoked he saw Gabrielle on the phone, then he heard her voice get louder and louder as she spoke with the rental people. That did not bode well for them.

"Morons! I'm dealing with fucking morons" Gabrielle exclaimed as she got out of the car. "They can't get us another car until tomorrow morning."

"That won't work," Daryl told her. This was definitely a two cigarette problem, so as he stepped on one butt, he lit another.

"You think I didn't tell them that? Of course I did, but apparently the rental places in this area closed hours ago and we have to wait for one to open up in the morning," Gabrielle explained. "Should I call Michonne and Rick?"

"Kinda late ain't it?"

"It's an hour earlier in Vegas, so it's only a little after ten, I'll call." Gabrielle walked away to get in touch with Michonne.

Daryl watched her walk in circles as she talked on the phone. How she could do anything in heels that high was beyond him. With everything they had gone through that day and the late hour it was, she still looked perfect. And with that, he felt the stirrings of interest begin again and did everything he could think of to stop it. In the meantime he stayed behind the car to hide his growing problem.

"They want to change the time of the wedding, but I told them let's see when the car gets here. Maybe we can still make it. How much more do we have to go?"

"We ain't even in Utah yet, least eight or nine more hours."

Gabrielle reached into the car and grabbed her purse. "Let's go get us some hotel rooms for the night."

Daryl followed her, but he wasn't going to get himself a room. The car would do just fine for him. This was money he just didn't have to spend. He didn't want to arrive in Vegas broke.

It was a cheap motel that didn't belong to any chain, but it looked halfway decent. The guy behind the desk buzzed them in. "We need two rooms,' Gabrielle told him.

"Just one," Daryl said.

"Excuse me?" she said turning to Daryl. "I don't know who you think you are, but I am not sleeping with you!" Gabrielle's eyes were full fire of as she faced turned to face Daryl.

"I don't wanna sleep with you either. You get your own room, I'll stay with the car." Here we go again he thought to himself.

Gabrielle turned to him and crossed her arms against her chest. "So I'm not good enough for you to sleep with?"

Why was she twisting his words? "I never said that. Just get your own damn room, I'm staying with the car," he growled at Gabrielle.

"Why sleep in the car when there's a perfectly good room with a bed here. The rooms are clean, right?"

"This was better than re-runs on the TV," the clerk said to himself. "Of course they're clean." At least they usually were.

"Good. We'll take two rooms," Gabrielle said ignoring Daryl. Sleeping in the car was so unnecessary.

Why wouldn't she just give up? "Princess, I don't want a room?' he said trying not let his frustration to show.

"Excuse me," the clerk interrupted.

"Would you give us a moment," Gabrielle snapped at him before turning back to Daryl. "Why not? Don't you want a good night sleep?"

"Drop it, Princess."

The more he called her Princess the more she pushed. "What is wrong with you? The car doesn't need to be babysat. It's dead. Why won't you get a room?" Daryl was being stubborn and there was no reason to be. Gabrielle was completely exasperated with him.

Daryl got close to her so much that Gabrielle took a small step back. His face was hard and she was taken back for a moment.

"I can't afford a room, that's why," he told her in a low growl. If he had a working car, he would be out of there in a second. She had no idea when to stop pushing and now she made him admit he couldn't even afford a god damn cheap motel room.

"I'll pay for it," she said pulling out her American Express card.

"I don't want your charity!" he yelled at her. "Worry about yourself and leave me the fuck alone." Daryl was so angry and embarrassed he was ready to just walk away. Since that wasn't an option, he simply turned his back on her and looked out into the dark parking lot. He had his pride and she just stomped all over it with her high heels and her American Express card.

"Lady," the clerk said butting. "I only got one room anyway. Take it or leave it."

"She'll take it," Daryl said throwing open the reception door and headed towards the car.

Gabrielle knew she had pushed him too far. Why was she constantly doing that? She should have realized that he couldn't afford a room. He most likely had brought just enough money for the trip and all these extra expenses there were occurring were adding up. She didn't say a word as she signed for the room and took the key the clerk handed her.

She walked over to the car, not knowing what to expect from him. Should she apologize? It had never occurred to her that money may be tight for him and it should have. There was a time that she couldn't afford but the basic necessities and sometimes not even that.

"What's the room? I'll bring the bags," he said his tone flat and emotionless.

"Daryl, I'm sorry…I didn't mean…"

He slammed the trunk closed surrounded by her multiple pieces of luggage. Luggage that cost more than several months' rent for him. "What is your room number? And don't say another word, Princess. Not. Another. Word." Daryl did not ever remember being this angry at anyone else except his brother.

"It's room 212," Gabrielle said softly.

Daryl balanced the three bags so he could wheel two and carry one. Gabrielle followed with her smaller carry-on piece. The only sound heard in the night air was the suitcase wheels going across the pavement and the distant cars from the highway.

The room was on the second floor so Gabrielle went up first to open the door while Daryl made two trips up with the bags. When she looked inside Gabrielle noticed the room had two double beds. The last piece was deposited inside and Daryl turned to go.

"Wait!" she called to him. "I'm sorry. I was completely out of line, but that's no reason to suffer in the car. This room has two beds in it, please share it with me."

Daryl hesitated for a minute not turning to look at Gabrielle. He simply couldn't. His shame was too great. He grabbed the doorknob with his left hand and walked out closing it behind him leaving Gabrielle alone in the room.

She kicked off her shoes and curled up on the bed. It bothered her tremendously that she had hurt him and she didn't understand why she had done it. He was really a nobody to her...only a friend of a friend that she only met that just day. So why did it upset her so much that she did? Tears started to roll down her cheeks sad for Daryl and sad that somehow she had become a horrible person and had not even realized it.

* * *

 **A/N- Thanks you for all the wonderful comments and followers! Shout out to I'm a Nerd and Proud, Miss October 13, flacagonzales, Vita Consuelo and Walking Addiction. Thanks for taking the time to drop me a review. Keep reading gang, it's gonna be a fun ride!**

 **Walker Witch**


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

The night air was cool as Daryl leaned against the car smoking another cigarette. At this rate he may go through this entire pack in record time. Only his brother could press his buttons like Gabrielle did. He probably overreacted, but she wouldn't stop pushing him until he admitted he couldn't afford the damn room. It embarrassed him to have to say that, but that was not as humiliating as her saying she would pay for it. She might as well just have kicked him in the balls, in fact that may have bothered him less.

He had no idea what it was like not to have to worry about money. He worked hard for what he made, but being a mechanic was not a well-paid occupation. It was what he knew and what he was good at, but it just barely paid his bills with very little left over. Daryl got the feeling that her American Express Card got a good workout on a daily basis. He doubted she knew what being poor was like.

If this was anyone else but Rick, he'd just turn around a hitch a ride home or suffer through another plane trip if he could get the ticket changed, however that worked. He just couldn't do that to Rick. This was his best friend and he would be at his wedding if it killed him and so far it was doing a damned good job.

Daryl climbed into the car and reclined the seat to get comfortable. He had slept in worse places than a Lexus, so all in all this wasn't that bad. He put his hand behind his head and closed his eyes. Smoking had given him time to calm down. He was no longer looking to punch a wall.

He owed Rick and his parents more than he ever could repay. The Grimes's took him in when he had no place left to go. He was at the lowest point in his life and they embraced him into their family. Daryl had a brutal fight with his father who was drunk as usual. He had accused him of eating food he had in the refrigerator, but Daryl never ate it. There hadn't been food in there in days.

His father was cursing and swinging at him and Daryl tried to hold him off, but his father was out of control. He had to defend himself or take another viscous beating that he just couldn't handle. This time he fought back and hard. At sixteen he was starting to rival his father in size, so he was able to fight back stronger than his old man was used to. He basically kicked his father's sorry drunk ass.

He left him bruised and beaten on the living room floor. He walked the three miles to the only place he knew he could go. When Mrs. Grimes opened the front door to his late night knocking, she saw a bloody Daryl in ripped clothes standing in the dark. His eyes were so sad, that she immediately engulfed him in her arms and didn't let go for minutes. Rick's father found them there crying together in the doorway. He ushered them inside and took over.

He asked his wife to heat food up for Daryl, while he took him upstairs. Mr. Grimes walked the bedraggled teen to their spare bedroom and put a hand on his shoulder. "Son," he said. "This room is yours for as long as you need it. This is now your home and we are your family. I'll talk to a lawyer in the morning on how we can do this, but in the meantime why don't you shower and I'll leave some of Rick's clothes for you on the bed. C'mon down when you are done and we'll look at your hands then and then get you something to eat. You know how much Ruthie likes to feed you boys."

All Daryl could do was nod his head yes as he was afraid he'd start crying again in front of his best friend's father. He had just offered him what he wanted more than anything in the world…to be part of a loving family. He looked up at the man he respected more than anything and saw tears shining in his eyes. Daryl couldn't hold them back any longer and as they started to flow down his cheeks, Mr. Grimes grabbed him by the back of the head and pulled him in close. "You're safe here, son," he whispered to Daryl. And he was.

Daryl never knew how they did it, but the Grimes's became his legal guardians until he turned eighteen. Those were the best years of his life and he never saw his father again.

That's why he knew he couldn't back out on Rick no matter how pissed off Gabrielle made him. He would never see her again after the next few days and was just fine with him. Daryl quickly brushed away the tears that threatened to fall. He hadn't thought about that night in a longtime. It was both his worst and best night combined into one.

A loud stomach growl broke Daryl out if his walk down memory lane. He realized he had not had a meal since that morning and was starving. He looked around for the beef jerky he had bought, but he could only find an empty bag. " _Damn_ ," he thought. " _The other bag must be with Gabrielle in the room_."

Since there was no way in hell he was going to go ask her for it, he was shit outta luck. A quick look around outside, didn't show anything with lights on. He would have to go hungry until the morning.

Daryl locked the doors and got as comfortable as he could. He closed his eyes and eventually drifted off to sleep. This horribly frustrating day was finally behind him.

.

* * *

Daryl decided he was getting too old to sleep in cars anymore. It had been a restless night of getting just a few hours of sleep here and there so now he was tired, grouchy and his muscles had stiffened up. It was only seven in the morning when he got out of the car and stretched his sore back. He lit up a cigarette next and took a nice long drag on it. This was his favorite smoke of the day. He reclined against the car as the rush he got from that first hit of nicotine flowed through him. Cigarettes were his drug of choice. He had given up anything else years ago because they made him act like his brother and that was the last thing he ever wanted to do.

In the daylight he now had a better idea of where they were. There were quite a few businesses that lined the road they were on. Hopefully, there was a place they could grab a quick breakfast. He was starving.

He wondered when the new car was coming and knew that he'd have to talk to Gabrielle about it. He really didn't want to have to deal with her at all, but since they had at least the next nine or so hours together in the car, he had no choice. He would just have to suck it up. Gabrielle should probably call the rental place again for an update. He automatically looked up at her room and saw her standing in the doorway looking down at him.

She waved at him and he acknowledged her. " _Might as well get this over with_ ," he said to himself. " _Maybe I'll grab a shower too_." Daryl grabbed his duffle bag off the back seat and headed towards the room.

Gabrielle had been up at the crack of dawn. She also had a fairly sleepless night, but for different reasons. The bed was comfortable enough, but what had happened with Daryl bothered her... a lot. She knew she owed him another apology.

She watched him walk slowly towards the motel from the parking lot. Initially she thought he was a pretty decent looking guy, but the more she got to know him the more her attraction to him grew and grew. He needed both a haircut and shave and that turned her on more than she wanted to admit. It shouldn't have, but it did. He wore old jeans and a blue plaid button down shirt that accentuated his broad shoulders. He had shoulders that went on for miles.

Michonne said he worked hard being a car mechanic. That should have automatically turned her off, but instead it did the exact opposite. Gabrielle was fighting the temptation that her body was responding to. Her head kept telling her he was not the right guy for her and while she was fighting her body's reaction to him, she was over compensating too much.

She was being too harsh, too abrasive…hell she was being too much of a bitch and it was backfiring on her big time. This was Michonne's fiancé's best friend and Gabrielle was treating him like crap just because she was finding him hot as hell. " _Get it together Gabby_ ," she scolded herself.

Daryl was approaching the doorway, so Gabrielle walked back into the room. "Good morning," she said to him with a hesitant smile.

"Mornin'" he automatically responded. "What's going on with the car? Any word?"

"No. Should I call them again?"

"Yeah. We need an ETA and the earlier the better. Can I shower while you call?" he asked.

"Of course," she told him. "Daryl?"

He was just about to walk into the bathroom. "Yeah?" he said without turning to look at her.

"I'm sorry about last night. I really am," she said apologizing.

He turned and his eyes met hers for the first time since he walked into the room. "Thanks," he said in his deep gravelly voice. He held her eyes for another second and then continued into the bathroom closing the door behind him.

Gabrielle sat on the bed for a moment to catch her breath. She heard the shower turn on and refused to let her mind wander where it had no business going. That brief second he looked at her, really looked at her threw her carefully planned life into a turmoil. It was however a turmoil she couldn't afford to have, as a man like Daryl fell nowhere in her plans.

She would be nice to him, she had to be, but she wouldn't let herself take it any further than that. She had no choice. Gabrielle grabbed her phone off the night stand and called Hertz to find out the status of the car. She needed to do anything but think about Daryl.

Once she got the company on the line, she was in full professional mode. By the time she got off, she had an estimated delivery time of eight thirty and they were getting free mileage on the car.

Meanwhile in the hot shower Daryl was trying to soothe the soreness out of his stiff muscles. Spending the night in the car was not the best idea he ever had, but had felt he didn't have any other choice. He washed his hair with one of the little bottle of shampoo the motel supplied and wondered if he should have gotten haircut before coming. He didn't know the last time he had one and it was getting pretty long.

When he walked into the motel room, it didn't get past him that Gabrielle was no longer wearing that sexy black dress, instead she was in tight jeans that hugged every one of her curves and made her legs look a mile long. Her red shirt emphasized her breasts and contrasted her long black hair perfectly. The woman sure knew how to dress for maximum impact.

He had no business thinking about her legs or breasts, especially when he was naked in the shower. None what so ever, but that didn't stop his dick from getting hard. She drove him crazy, she treated him like he was beneath her and yet all he wanted to do was rip her clothes off and make her scream his name.

Daryl did the only thing he could, which was jerk himself off in the shower while she was in the very next room. It didn't take him long at all, as his excitement level had skyrocketed knowing she was so close.

After that, he quickly cleaned up quickly and got out of the shower. It didn't take him long to dry off and put back on the jeans he had on yesterday with a black t-shirt. He wanted to be comfortable while he drove.

When he left the bathroom, Gabrielle was sitting cross-legged on the bed waiting for him. He felt his cheeks blush in embarrassment when he looked at her. He quickly put his duffle down on the other bed and pretended to look through it.

"Did you talk to the car people?" he asked.

"Yes. It will be here by eight thirty, so we have a little time yet," Gabrielle explained.

" _Great_ ," he thought to himself. " _What the fuck are we gonna do for an hour_?"

Daryl's stomach growled loudly at that point and he knew food had to be next on their agenda.

"Oh my God. I am starving too," Gabrielle laughed. Daryl noticed how her face just lit up when she smiled. She was even prettier if that was at all possible.

"You got that bag of snacks we got earlier? I should have some jerky in there." Gabrielle pointed to the plastic bag on the desk and Daryl pulled put his jerky. Everything he had bought for Gabrielle was gone. He took a piece for himself and then offered the bag to Gabrielle. She didn't hesitate on taking a strip.

"You ate all that junk food you got already?" he asked her.

Gabrielle nodded turning slightly pink in embarrassment. "Don't take this wrong Princess, but how can you eat that junk and still look as hot as you do?" Daryl took a piece of jerky for himself and then offered the bag to Gabrielle. She didn't hesitate on taking a strip.

"I have a really high metabolism. Someday it may catch up worth me, but now I can eat whatever I want." She realized that Daryl wasn't looking at her. "Daryl?

"Yeah?"

"Thanks for the compliment. I know we haven't gotten off on the best foot, so I appreciate it." She gave him a smile that simply lit up her face.

He started to think and feel things he shouldn't be and knew he needed to get out of the room as soon as possible. "I'm fixin' to go down to the office and find out where we can get a quick breakfast from. Maybe stuff to go. We need to hit the road as quickly as we can. We have more hours to drive, than we have time. We have no choice to do it, but it's is gonna be tough," he told her.

Gabrielle looked a bit worried. "Should we call them?"

"Let's get on the road first and then give them an update, 'specially since it's earlier there anyway. Right?"

"Good idea. Do you want me to go with you?" Gabrielle asked.

Daryl shook his head. "Someone needs to stay here in case the car is early. I won't be long."

Gabrielle watched him leave the room once again. She could tell that he wasn't comfortable around her and she blamed herself for that. Little did she know the real reason he couldn't look her in face that morning.

Daryl headed over to the motel office to get advice on breakfast. The guy there told him that just a few buildings down the road was a casual restaurant that served breakfast and lunch. Since it was within walking distance, Daryl headed over to check it out.

The Sunflower Café' was small, but clean and fairly busy. Busy usually meant good food, so Daryl asked to see a menu. While reading through the choices, he realized that he never asked Gabrielle what she wanted. She would have to get settle for whatever he ordered because there was no way he was walking back now.

He ordered four different breakfast sandwiches along with two of the largest coffees they had to go. While he waited for the food, he drank a cup at the counter. He needed the caffeine almost as bad as he need that first cigarette earlier.

Within twenty minutes he was headed back to the motel and he was happy to see a flatbed tow truck pulling in with another car behind it. He had a good feeling that's what they were waiting on, so he headed over to them.

Gabrielle was watching out the window and saw the tow truck pull in and Daryl walk over to it. Since the car was in her name, she headed out to see if she was needed.

Daryl put the food down on the hood of the broken down car. Finally something was going right for them, as these guys were from Hertz and had brought them the replacement car. Gabrielle needed to sign for it, so Daryl turned to go get her and saw that she was already on her way.

It didn't take long to get everything squared away and it wasn't even eight thirty yet. It was time to go. Their Lexus had been exchanged for a Chevrolet Impala. Daryl would take an American made car any day. He stored Gabrielle's multiple pieces of luggage in the trunk and while she checked out of the room.

Gabrielle came back over to the car and it was time to go. "Princess, I got a couple of breakfast sandwiches for us. Wasn't sure what you liked, so take your pick. Some got sausage or bacon on them. I eat anything so I'll take what's left. Got coffee too," he told Gabrielle.

It didn't bother her this time that he had called her Princess. It was more of a nickname, then him insinuating she was a pain in the ass. She kind of liked it. "I'm starved anything is fine with me."

Gabrielle looked in the bag and saw that he had gotten four sandwiches in total. She could eat two...easy. Her high metabolism burned off calories without her even trying. "How many do I get?"

Daryl looked up from lighting a cigarette. How many? His mouth curved in to a half smile. "You can have two, if you want more than that, you're on your own. Fixin's for the coffee is in the bag too. Didn't know how you liked it."

"Light and sweet…just like me," she teased.

Daryl about spit out his coffee. "Okay," was all he managed to say.

Gabrielle laughed at him. "You don't agree?"

"I'm not sayin' a word," he told her trying to hold back a smile. Anything was a sure fire way to get him in trouble and they were about to start a long day in the car together.

"Chicken shit!" she called him. The sexy smile on her face easily let him know she was teasing him.

"Just fix your coffee and get your sandwiches, Princess. No starting any shit. We got a long day to go," he told her. He was laughing inside. He didn't remember the last time anyone called him that and didn't end up bloody. He knew she was just having fun. He didn't think she had it in her.

A few minutes later they were settled in the car about ready to go. Daryl quickly ate one sandwich before starting the trip. His stomach could not wait any longer. Soon they were headed back onto the interstate with Utah in their sights.

* * *

 **A/N -** Thank you for all the chapter reads and all of the great reviews. I love knowing what you all think.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

The miles were going much slower than Daryl would have liked. They were still making decent progress toward Las Vegas, but it simply wasn't enough. They had been on the road about three hours when they felt it was okay to call Rick and Michonne. This time Gabrielle put the phone on speaker so everyone could talk.

"Hey I have you on speaker so Daryl can hear," Gabrielle told Michonne.

"Let me do the same for Rick. Where are you guys?"

Gabrielle looked at Daryl and he looked back at her. "Hello? Gabby? Where are you guys?"

"Somewhere in fuckin' Utah I think," Daryl finally answered. We haven't seen a town since we crossed the damn border. Rick, you so fuckin' owe me for this."

"Awe, c'mon Daryl you're getting to see this great country and not just the hills of Georgia. You're expanding your horizons," Rick laughed. He knew more than anyone that Daryl hated to be out of his comfort zone.

"Fuck my horizons! Last night we drove through the god damn Rocky Mountains. Crazy ass turns and sheer drop offs. And don't get me started on the damn tunnel!" Daryl was riled up with pent up frustration.

"Tunnel? What tunnel? We didn't drive through any tunnel," Gabrielle said. What was he talking about?

"You bet your sweet ass we did. You slept through it last night, Princess. Fifty or Sixty miles of a long dark hole that was never ending!" he growled.

Michonne looked over at Rick and mouthed, "Princess?" to him. Rick shrugged his shoulders with a smile. His buddy must be having a hell of a trip. Rick knew that Gabrielle could be difficult at times with her pretentious attitude and he would bet money on that that the two of them were clashing. Rick was enjoying every minute of it.

"I finally see a sign coming up for the town of Richfield. When we get there, we'll take a break and get an idea of where the hell we are. We'll call you back then, 'kay?" Daryl suggested.

"It's a plan, bro, but if you guys can't make it, we'll just push the wedding back a few hours. We can do that," Rick reminded them.

Daryl shook his head. He didn't' want to delay their wedding. "Not if we can help it."

Gabrielle said goodbye for them and the call disconnected. "I can't believe I missed that tunnel. I completely forgot it was out here. I remember learning about it in school." She proceeded to tell him all about the Eisenhower Tunnel, which Daryl really didn't give a shit about. However, he did realize that besides being one of the hottest women he had ever seen, Gabrielle was also very smart. Just another reason, she was completely out of his league. The only reason he barely finished high school was for Mrs. G.

The scenery they saw while driving through Utah was incredible. In the desert there were unbelievable rock formations along with the high mesas that came in every shade of red and orange imaginable and were simply breathtaking. Daryl wished he had his motorcycle with him instead of the car. He would have enjoyed riding that through the valleys and canyons that surrounded them. It was wishful thinking on his part as he knew he'd never get back this way again.

When they finally made it to Richfield, Gabrielle was able to use her phone to figure out they still had four and half hours to go. It was already two o'clock. "We're not going to make it," Gabrielle signed.

"Nope. Fuck." Daryl ran his fingers through his hair in frustration. "Call them and let them know what's going on."

They were sitting in a McDonald's parking lot. Daryl had already gassed up the car and they were going to grab lunch to go and take a quick bathroom break. Before they headed inside, Gabrielle made the call and Daryl got out of the car. He let her do all of the talking as he felt like he was letting his friends down, even though he had no control over the mess this trip was. He only hoped it wasn't an omen.

Daryl paced back and forth next to the car as Gabrielle spoke to Michonne and Rick. The afternoon sun was bright and blinding so he was glad he had his sunglasses with him. He finally stopped pacing and lit up a cigarette. He was leaning against his side of the car staring out at nothing in particular when he heard he car door open and Gabrielle get out.

When she came around the back of the car to let him know what was going on, she hesitated for a moment. He looked so damn good to her. His worn jeans was hugging his strong thighs and the black t-shirt showed off his broad shoulders perfectly. From years of lugging heavy equipment and car parts, his arms were honed to perfection. They were the right combination of muscles and strength that would have any woman drooling, including herself.

She could tell he was mad at himself by the stern unfriendly look on his face. He didn't turn his head as she approached him. "Daryl?"

He took another drag off of his cigarette, before slowly turning towards her. "What?"

"It's okay. They had already pushed the wedding back to nine o'clock," she told him. Not wanting to rush their friends, Rick and Michonne had already been in contact with the wedding chapel and had already moved the brief ceremony back. They assured Gabrielle that they were fine with it and not to worry.

It was a weight off of Daryl's shoulders, even though he still felt like it was his fault. "Let's get sumthin' to eat and get outta here."

Gabrielle knew that he blamed himself, even though it wasn't anyone's fault. She followed him inside and they were back on the road in just a few minutes. It was a quiet trip the rest of the way.

It was almost seven when they finally pulled into the valet area for their hotel. They were staying at the Bellagio. Daryl had never seen anything like Las Vegas and the strip before. Seeing it on TV didn't do it justice at all. He was completely in awe.

It was par for the course that they hit more construction delays outside of Vegas on I-15 that delayed them even more. Gabrielle kept quiet as she realized that Daryl was wound so tight he was about to blow. Once they finally got off the interstate and into the city, she tried to use her GPS in her phone to help them locate the hotel, but something was wrong as it kept taking them in the wrong direction and by the time they arrived, neither of them was speaking to the other.

Coincidently, Rick and Michonne happened to be in the lobby when they arrived. Gabrielle flowed through the marble lobby with a bellman and his cart behind her toting the multiple pieces of luggage she had. The smile on her face did not reach her eyes. Daryl had his duffle bag on his shoulder and didn't even attempt a smile. His stony expression showed a man that was ready to explode.

The soon-to-be-married couple looked at each other and knew that major trouble had just walked in the door. Gabrielle headed to the check in desk, but Daryl went over to Rick and Michonne. The bride wrapped her arms around him and gave him a long hug. "You okay?" she asked him softly.

"I'm fine," he told her, but the tone of his voice said otherwise.

"You don't sound fine," she told him looking him right in the eye.

Rick knew his friend and if Daryl didn't want to talk about something he wouldn't. Whatever happened during this trip Rick would eventually find out, but not now. He knew Michonne shouldn't push Daryl or he'd retreat even more into himself. This should be a fun time for them all and so far it was not.

He realized that asking Daryl to travel to Las Vegas was a huge thing for his best friend. Daryl had never been out of Georgia, nor had he ever traveled anywhere before. Now he had taken his first trip on a plane and then had to drive days across some difficult country to get to Las Vegas in time. All that and being stuck with Gabrielle the entire time did not make for a happy Daryl. Rick knew perfectly well what Gabrielle could be like.

Michonne had told him long ago how Gabby was raised by her poor religious grandmother after her mother died. Michonne had seen a scared girl in need of a friend when she started school after she moved in to Senoia and they had been friends ever since. After college, Gabby was hired by the highly successful marketing firm where she still worked today. Living in the high paced world of Atlanta and combined with extremely successful career path she was on, Gabby stated to change. She now wanted to be called Gabrielle, but Michonne refused to call her that. Her attitude became one of privilege and she was doing her best to completely forget her roots.

Rick could easily see her and Daryl clashing. His friend was everything that Gabby left behind.

Daryl knew that Michonne would not let up unless he relaxed. He had finally made it to this crazy city and he could hand the Princess off to her friend. There was no need to stay uptight.

He took a deep breath and just let all of the tension out of his body. "I'm fine Michonne, just a little tired," he told her giving her a kiss on the forehead. "I'm okay, really."

"Alright then," She said feeling better. Daryl no longer looked like he wanted to kill someone. "Rick, why don't you take him up to his room and I'll go check in with Gabby."

Daryl picked up his duffle where he had dropped it on the floor. "Good luck with the Princess," he snickered. Michonne swatted him on the arm and headed over to the hotel front desk.

"Fun trip?" Rick could not resist asking.

"You have no idea, man. No idea." They both walked into the elevator and Rick pushed the button for the fifth floor. Daryl briefly told him about the plane fiasco. "Not looking forward to the flight home."

"At least we'll all be together on the flight home," Rick told him as the elevator doors opened.

"Yeah right," Daryl laughed. "Us regular people maybe, but the Princess flies first class."

Rick popped the key card in the lock and opened the door. He followed Daryl inside. "You're shitting me. She flew first class?"

Daryl took a quick look around the hotel room. It was definitely the nicest place he had ever stayed at. There was a king size bed to his left, windows that overlooked the Strip and a seating area with a couple of chairs. There was a desk in the corner by the dresser that held a flat screen TV that under any other circumstances he would be watching it with a beer. The white and blue color scheme suited him. Daryl dropped his bag and lay down on the bed. Damn that felt good. "She sure as hell did. Just glad we're here. It was a rough trip."

Rick straddled the chair that was at the desk. "I could only imagine. Princess? Where'd you get that from?"

Daryl sat up on his elbows. He could always talk to Rick. "Cause she treats everyone as if they are beneath her and she's a fuckin' Princess that we should bow down to." Daryl had needed to vent to someone for hours and he finally had it. "Did you know she brought three pieces of luggage… no wait make that four with her carry on.? Fuckin' four! And guess who had to carry most of them to the car? Me. I was her fuckin' personal bellboy, but what pissed me off was that she didn't ask for help…she expected it. "

Daryl was getting riled up so he got up off the bed and paced the room. "The worst part was at the damn motel last night. She asked the guy for two rooms, I told her just one and before I could explain she jumped down my throat saying she wasn't going to sleep with me. Hell that was the last thing I ever wanted. I just didn't want a room. The car was fine."

"Why the car?" Rick asked.

Daryl knew he didn't have to be ashamed with Rick. "Couldn't afford it, man."

"Awe, man. I'm sorry you were put in that positon." Rick never thought with the travel plan changes Daryl had to do, how that would have affected him financially.

"But she wouldn't quit after I told her that. She just whipped out her American Express card…again and said that she would take care of it. Man she cut my balls off right here in front of the dude at the motel. I just walked out or I was gonna hit something and I couldn't guarantee it wasn't gonna be her. She's nothing but a fuckin' spoiled princess." Daryl was glad he could tell Rick what had gone on during the time he had spent with Gabrielle. He just wished she wasn't Michonne's best friend.

Rick sat there stunned. He knew that Gabrielle could be bitchy, but he never thought she'd treat Daryl that way. He had his pride and she completely stomped all over it. "I'm so sorry, Daryl. I know she and Michonne have been friends since they were kids, but I never got it. I just know that Michonne doesn't let her get away with any of her shit. Apparently she's changed a lot in these last few years." He got an idea. "Why don't you take it easy after the drive and meet me downstairs in the bar around quarter after eight. We can throw back a few drinks before the wedding. We both need it."

Daryl looked at his watch and saw it was going on seven thirty. "Fuck, yeah. I'll be there."

Rick got up and headed towards the door. He turned back to Daryl for a second. "Can't believe I'm really doing this."

"You are man. She's a great girl. Doesn't put up with your shit," he laughed. "Your parents would be happy for you."

"Michonne might not be who they expected me to end up with, but yeah, they would be happy. Your turn next, bro," Rick teased.

"Oh hell no," Daryl said firmly. "That ain't never gonna happened."

Rick looked at his friend and wished he could find the same happiness he had. "Never say never, man."

Daryl had no desire what so ever to ever get married. That was never going to be in the cards for him. "Fuck man, do you really think there's a woman out there that would put up with me? Doubt that."

"You got a point there. I barely tolerate your sorry ass," Rick laughed. "See ya in the bar in a few."

"Awe…you love me and you know it, Grimes." Daryl said it in a teasing manner, but Rick looked at him completely serious.

"I do Daryl and don't you ever forget it." Rick left the room and Daryl stood there for a moment looking at the closed door. There was at least one person in the world that gave a shit about him.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

Daryl stood outside the entrance to the hotel smoking a cigarette. He had come down a few minutes early so he could sneak one in before meeting up with Rick. He looked around at the hordes of people milling around and the colorful flashing lights coming from every single business. There were casinos absolutely everywhere. He had never seen anything like it. Daryl thought he may go look at the big casino the Bellagio had, but he wasn't gambler. You needed money to gamble and he had none to spare.

Everything there was so different than what he was used to, including the heat. Georgia gave him hot steamy days, the humidity was what typically made the days unbearable, but Vegas was different. It was just hot, really hot, but no humidity at all. At least he wasn't drenched in sweat like he usually was at home since he was wearing the only decent outfit he had.

Michonne had helped him buy something for the wedding. It wasn't fancy, just a black button down shirt and a pair of black pants that wasn't jeans or work pants. He still had his work boots on, but at least they were clean now.

After taking his last drag of the cigarette, he headed inside to find the bar. After the stress of the last few days, he certainly could use a drink or three. Maybe with a few under his belt, he'd be able to handle the Princess better. They'd be stuck together all evening and he wasn't looking forward to it.

Rick was sitting at the bar when he arrived. He was dressed in jacket and tie and was already nursing a beer. The bartender saw Daryl sit down and walked over placing a coaster down in front of him. "What can I get for you?"

"Two shots of Jack and whatever you have on tap," he told him.

The bartender poured the two shots. "We have thirty-two beers on tap."

"Fuck. Seriously?" The bartender nodded as he placed the shots down. "Just make it Bud."

While Daryl waited for his beer, he picked up a shot glass. "To you, man. I can't believe you're fuckin' getting married, but couldn't be to a better woman." They clinked their glasses together and threw back the shot.

The bartender delivered his beer. "Do it again," Daryl told him. Two more shots appeared in front of them.

"To Mr. and Mrs. G. Your boy done good…real good. I sure miss ya both." The second toast was emotional for them both. Daryl hadn't expected to say that, but it just came out. He quickly threw back the second shot and turned his head so Rick didn't see the lone tear that threatened to fall. He quickly blinked it away.

Rick was touched by Daryl's words. "You know they both loved you, right?"

"Yeah," Daryl said taking a big sip of his beer. "Always wished they were my parents when I was a kid. I never knew how they convinced my old man to let them be my guardians after that night." Rick and Daryl both knew what night he meant. The night a sixteen year old boy finally fought back or he would have ended up another broken bloody mess at the hands of his out of control alcoholic father.

Rick had known for years what had happened, but Daryl never asked so he kept it to himself. "Dad went over to your house the next day. He had a friend that was a lawyer, who quickly drew up a custody agreement that morning. He told your old man that if he didn't sign it, he'd call the cops on him about his continued abuse of you and then he'd beat the shit outta him so bad, he's be lucky to ever walk. Dad wasn't playing games, when he went over there," Rick told him. He took a long swallow from his beer.

"Then apparently, your father started mouthing off to him and all I know is that Dad came back with bruised knuckles that day and a signed agreement."

"How do you know this? Daryl asked stunned. "You never told me." He finished his beer and signaled for another.

"You were sound asleep that morning, in fact I think you slept most of the day. I overheard my Mom and Dad talking in the kitchen once he finally got back. I peeked in there and saw Mom cleaning his hands with the first aid kit. I heard her ask him, 'Is he ours?' and Dad said, 'Finally.' They loved you like you were their own, Daryl. Beside the day that Mom died, that was the only other time I saw my father cry."

"Living with your family was the best years of my life," Daryl admitted. They two friends looked at each other and saw tears that were shining in each other's eyes. Instinctively they hugged each other not caring who saw.

"You were the brother I never had."

"You were the one I shoulda had," Daryl told him.

They pulled apart and downed the beers they had in front of them. They did not open up like this often, but they each knew a part of them healed today. Inside Daryl was an emotional mess as he tried to handle what Rick had told him. He knew his old man couldn't wait to get rid of him as he was nothing but a big pain in the ass to him, but what Mr. G did and how they felt about him, simply stunned him.

The bartender asked if they wanted another beer and Rick shook him off. Michonne would kill him if he was drunk for the wedding. "I have one more thing I want to talk to you about, before the girls arrive."

"What's that?"

"Dad left you something in his will."

"He did? Why are you telling me this now?" Daryl was confused. He figured maybe a watch or a something like that, so why did Rick wait almost two years to tell him.

"There were conditions that had to be met. My parents wanted you to be free of Merle for a full year as they didn't trust him. The year is up next month so I thought this was as good a time as any to tell you. They left you ten thousand dollars, Daryl." Rick sat back and saw the astonished look come over his best friends face.

He'd been waiting a long time to tell Daryl about his father's bequest. After his mother died, his dad had talked to him about the terms of their will. He wanted his son to know why they were having Daryl included in it and what requirements came with his inheritance. The Grimes' were not a rich family, just comfortably middle class. They spent their money wisely, paid off the mortgage on the house and both had life insurance policies. Rick was happy that that they were including his friend, he just hoped never to have to execute the will. His mother had just died of cancer and he sure as hell didn't want to lose his father any time soon. No one expected the sudden heart attack that took his dad not two weeks later.

"Did you say ten grand?" Daryl asked his eyes as wide as saucers.

"Yep," Rick smiled at him.

"No fuckin' way. That money is yours. I don't deserve anything. No way," he told Rick. He wasn't their son, Rick was. Sure they took him in and included him in the family, but he wasn't family...he wasn't blood. That money wasn't his, but it sure would go far in making his life easier that's for sure. No way could he accept that kind of money.

Rick had a feeling that Daryl was going to react this way. Anyone else would jump at the chance to have ten thousand dollars handed to them, but not Daryl. His friend was such a stand-up guy.

"Daryl, I want you to have the money. They loved you like a son. I'm glad they did this." Daryl was shaking his head no, so Rick put his hand on his shoulder. "You are the brother I never had. Mom and Dad wanted more kids, but after me it never happened. Mom loved taking care of people and do you think her double chocolate cookies were always just around for me? Hell, no. She made those all the time so that you would have them when you came over. I liked her chocolate chips better, but I got stuck with double chocolate every week because of you, you son of bitch."

Daryl chuckled at his friend. He was overwhelmed by the Grimes' generosity. Rick had the absolute best parents in the world and he had the worst. They welcomed him as Rick's friend in grade school, the kid who never had clean clothes to wear or rarely a decent meal to eat. He was lucky they accepted him into their family, as no one else gave the youngest Dixon kid a second thought. His family was a white trash as you could get.

"Wow," was all he could say. "How? What?" He played with the label on the empty beer bottle completely unsure of what to do. It kept his hands busy while his brain was in a complete turmoil.

"You have one more month to make it a year since you left Merle and then came to live with me and Michonne and now on your own. I'll notify the lawyer that we are on track to get you the money, but please promise me one thing. You don't ever tell your brother about it. You know what will happen if you do. Okay?" Rick knew the money belonged to Daryl, but there was no he wanted his lowlife no-account brother to touch one penny of it.

"Never. Thank you, Rick. Thank you." The two men stood up and hugged. Their bond was deeper than any friendship.

"Can I get in on the love?"

They both turned to see a radiant Michonne standing next to them. The ivory of her dress contrasted beautifully with her dark skin. It was lace with long sleeves, skin tight and very, very short.

"Damn, Michonne!" Daryl exclaimed. "You sure you wanna settle for this guy here? You look way too hot for him."

She wrapped her arms around Daryl and gave him a hug. "You clean up pretty good too," she told him with a laugh before planting a big kiss on his cheek. "Oh my God, you shaved!" she said noticing his smooth cheeks. He had kept the goatee.

"Yeah, well it is your wedding after all," he said slightly embarrassed.

Only when Michonne slipped out of his arms and into her fiancé's, did Daryl finally see Gabrielle. He didn't know it was possible for her to look any hotter than she did in that black dress, but she sure as hell did. She wore a short bright blue dress that dipped really low over her breasts and she wore it like a second skin.

The drinks must have mellowed him out, as he was no longer angry with her. "Hi Princess, you look good too," he told her.

Gabrielle was happy that he was being nice. Even though he called her Princess, there wasn't any anger in his sexy gravelly voice. She was tired of being a bitch to him. "Not bad yourself," she told him with a smile. She had the biggest urge to brush his long bangs out of his eyes, but she resisted. "They picked up the car this afternoon, so we don't have to worry about it"

"What do I owe you?" Daryl reached for his wallet.

Gabrielle hesitated for a moment.

"Princess, what do I owe you? I pay my debts," he told her.

"Alright. It was only one twenty total as I got them to give us free mileage. Splitting it that's just sixty." Daryl pulled three twenties from his wallet and handed them over to her. He didn't like owing anyone.

Gabrielle stuffed the cash in her purse and turned to everyone, "Don't we have a wedding to go to tonight? Let's go get you guys married!"

"Hell yeah!" shouted Daryl and Rick at the same time making them all laugh. Rick settled the bar tab and the all headed towards the entrance of the hotel.

Daryl felt Gabrielle put her arm through his. It surprised him. He looked over at her and she gave him a timid smile. It looked like she was trying to put their differences behind them too. During the walk from the bar through the hotel lobby, it did not get by Daryl how many men were looking at both couples as they made their way across the shiny marble floor towards the enormous glass doors that led outside. Even though he knew they were not really together, no one else did. For the first time in his life he had a hot girl on his arm and he was enjoying every minute of it.

He may be on the far side of thirty, but Daryl never dated much. He was never comfortable with asking a girl out or figuring out where to go or what to do. Unless you considered eating at a bar or a fast food drive thru eating out, that was as fancy as he got. He was never at ease with it, so he rarely did it. Most of the women he met were hook-ups made a lot easier by the beer he had been drinking. His erratic life did not go with having a girlfriend.

A woman like Gabrielle would never look twice at him, hell she wouldn't look even once, so having her gently clinging to his arm was a novelty that he found he was enjoying. Daryl had never considered himself good-looking. His confidence level was always low from his father constantly telling him that he was an unwanted piece of shit. You hear that enough, you end up believing it. He believed it.

Daryl was a good-looking guy who was just a little rough around the edges. His hair was always too long, he rarely shaved and his limited social skills with women held him back. It was rare for him to approach a woman. They usually came onto him and he always figured the booze involved always made him seem more appealing than normal.

Gabrielle was not sure why she linked her arm with Daryl's, except that she wanted to feel like she belonged to someone even if it was just for the walk through the lobby. At least that's what she was trying to tell herself. The fact that she was finding herself more and more attracted to him, even when they were arguing was both driving her crazy and confusing her at the same time. They would be paired up tonight, so it she was hoping they could all have a good time. Since most of the tension between her and Daryl came from herself, she was trying to be on her best behavior.

There was a long black limousine waiting for them out front which surprised Daryl. He had never been in one before. This trip was certainly full of a lot of 'firsts' for him. The uniformed driver opened the door and the ladies climbed in giving the guys a nice view of their rear assets. Rick and Daryl looked at each other in complete understanding.

"She may be a pain in the ass, but she damn sure she has a nice one," Daryl muttered.

"I heard that," Rick laughed.

"If you say anything, I'll deny it to my dying day, bro," Daryl told him as he gave Rick a push into the limo.

The bride and groom were sitting very cozily next to each other talking in soft whispers. Daryl sat down on the leather seat near Gabrielle, but there was still plenty of room between them. The driver soon had the car heading down the strip towards the wedding chapel.

Daryl got his first really good look at Las Vegas in all of its nighttime splendor. To really appreciate the city, you need to see it at night with the lights flashing and the excitement level soaring and that's what Daryl was seeing. It was mind-blowing to him.

He looked over at Gabrielle and she looked at home in the limo. He doubted this was her first time in one like it was for him. It felt a little weird to him, but he was happy not to have to drive through all of the traffic. "You ever been here before?" he asked her.

"A couple times," she told him. "Usually for some type of convention or corporate retreat, but yes, I've been here a few times."

"I never seen nothin' like it. Man, this is wild," he said shaking his head.

"It is certainly a one-of-a-kind city," Gabrielle smiled. "Did you go into the casino?"

"Nope. I may look around in it before we leave, but I ain't got that type of money to lose," he told her.

"I understand that completely, I'm not a gambler either, but you have to put just a few dollars into a slot machine. You can't come to Vegas and not gamble at all. She could see that Daryl was not going for it. "Daryl, just a dollar or two to say that you did it. C'mon, I know you want to." The sexy smile she gave him almost had him giving her everything he owned.

"Okay, just a couple of dollars, but that's it."

"I can't wait to watch." She would go if he asked her to accompany him, in fact she knew she'd do most anything he asked. She was headed for deep trouble and she couldn't seem to stop. She wasn't sure she wanted to.

Daryl turned to look out the tinted window as they passed through the vibrant city on their way to the chapel. If he didn't watch himself, Gabrielle and that damned sexy smile she had would have him wrapped around her little finger before he knew it. The woman that literally almost drove him crazy for hours on end yesterday and was the only other person to piss him off as badly as his brother did, was starting to drive him crazy for completely different reasons. All of a sudden she was being nice to him and combined with that killer dress, he was thinking about her in completely inappropriate ways…like naked and under him.

Gabrielle was drop dead gorgeous and had a body that made his mouth water. If she continued to flirt with him, it would be his downfall. There was no way any man on earth would be able to resist her, him included. One or two night stands never bothered him, in fact that's what he preferred, but he wasn't sure he would survive one with her. It was best to keep those types of thoughts and images from happening, because just picturing her in bed with him, was bringing to life a part of his body that would surely embarrass him.

He felt the car slow down and they stopped in front of the _Little White Wedding Chapel_. "Last chance to back out guys," he tried to say with a straight face.

Gabrielle elbowed him in the side. "What the hell was that for? I'm just teasing them, Princess."

"I know," she laughed. "After all the shit we went through to get here, they are getting married whether they want to or not! Don't give them many ideas."

"You two just stop. There's no way I am not marrying this man tonight, so you have nothing to worry about," Michonne told with a big smile. The driver came around the side of the car and opened the door. "Let's go!" she told them all. "I am so ready."

"Me too, babe. Me too," Rick told her with a kiss.

The four of them stood in front of the brightly light wedding chapel. Michonne linked her arm in Rick's and Gabrielle did the same with Daryl. It was time for a wedding.

.

* * *

 **A/N - This chapter makes me get teary every time I read it and I wrote it. Thanks to Enjoi88, EastDenise, RBGzmom and Walking Addiction fro your comments. Thank you! Walking Addiction is you register, I can respond to you. As a guest I can't.**

 **So what do you guys think? I would love to know.**

 **Walker Witch**


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

"By the power vested by me and the great state of Nevada, I now pronounce you man and wife. You may now kiss the bride," the minister proclaimed with a flourish.

Rick pulled his new wife to him and kissed her passionately. It was finally a done deal. He and Michonne were married. This was the happiest day of his life. When they finally broke apart, Daryl slapped him on the back.

"Congratulations, man!" he told him with a big smile. Rick deserved someone as awesome as Michonne.

Daryl looked over at Michonne and Gabrielle hugging and saw tears in both their eyes. Why women cried at happy shit, he never understood. The beautiful bride still clutched her bouquet of ivory roses when he went over to give her a kiss and hug. "I am so happy for you both," he whispered to her.

"Thank you," she said wiping her eyes.

"Let's go! We have some celebrating to do!" Rick said to get them moving out to the waiting limousine.

"Champagne time!" Gabrielle exclaimed.

Rick pocketed the marriage certificate and they all headed back to the limo. It was a very happy and buoyant mood in the car as the groom popped the champagne they had cooling and poured everyone a glass. Daryl was not a fan of champagne, but he was going with it. They each did a quick toast.

"To the most incredible woman I have ever known. I still can't believe you actually married me!"

"To the hottest cop and most awesome guy…of course I married you. I'm not stupid!"

"To my best friend and her new husband, I love you both and wish you the best."

And finally, "You two are the best friends a guy could ask for. All my life I knew I could count on Rick and now Michonne too. You guys never hesitate to include his loser best friend in everything. Wish you the best and congratulations!"

Daryl words affected them all in different way. Rick counted himself lucky to have a friend as loyal as Daryl was. Michonne saw a lonely guy that was given a rough hand his whole life and was happy her friendship meant that much to him. And all Gabrielle heard was him calling himself a loser and that made her sad.

The heaviness of the moment was quickly eased by the limousine pulling up in front of the restaurant they had reservations at. It was much fancier than anything Daryl had ever eaten at, but Gabrielle helped him understand the menu without making him feel stupid. He was definitely feeling more comfortable around her.

They all had a late, but enjoyable dinner with more champagne and wine during the meal. It was going on midnight when they finally returned to the Bellagio. Rick and Michonne excused themselves going up to their room. It was time for the newlyweds to be alone.

Gabrielle's phone had rung, so she was talking on it as she followed the happy couple up in the elevator. Daryl stood by himself in the spacious lobby. He was wide awake even though he had slept badly last night in the car. He was not ready to call it a night yet. He looked over at the bar where he had Rick had been earlier and decided to have another drink.

He walked in and saw the same bartender as before. He smiled at Daryl and placed a cocktail napkin down in front of him. "Your friend got married?"

"He sure as hell did. He's a lucky man. He married a great girl."

"What you drinking?"

"Jack and coke," he told him.

"Make that two," the sexy voice next to him said. Daryl turned his head to see Gabrielle settling herself onto a bar stool.

"Hey Princess, thought you went up."

"Just for a minute I did," she told him. "Too wired to sleep."

"Same here," he told her. Daryl took a sip of his drink. He was drinking more tonight than he had in a long time and he was feeling it, but he wasn't hurting anyone by getting drunk. All he had to do was stumble upstairs to his room so another drink or two didn't matter.

Gabrielle hadn't been happy that her job was bothering her when she told them she would not available. It was the middle of the night in Atlanta and they should have been able to figure out the answer to the problem on their own. She would deal with that when she got back. When she finished handling the work call, she remembered seeing Daryl head into the bar. Suddenly that's where she wanted to be.

He was still a mystery to her and Gabrielle was really curious to know more. However, she knew had no business wanting to know more, but she couldn't help it. She knew this was not the right move for her as he held no place in her future and a one night stand was not an option because of his friendship with Michonne and Rick, yet she still headed to the bar. Maybe it was all the champagne and wine she had during the night, but she was feeling a bit daring and hanging out with Daryl for a while was more than appealing to her. It was downright irresistible. That's why she was drinking some Jack Daniel's which she hadn't had a very long time in the bar with a man she had no business being with.

"So Daryl Dixon, tell me about you," she asked slightly slurring her words. "I want to know all about you."

Daryl looked at Gabrielle and raised his eyebrows. She was drunk, but she still was damn cute. "Not much to tell. I'm an auto mechanic, that's it." He finished the rest of his drink and put the empty glass down on the bar.

"I know there has to more," Gabrielle said with a sexy smile. She ran her fingertips up and down his arm. "Tell me more."

While Daryl was debating what to do, Gabrielle waved the bartender over and ordered two shots of Jagermeister. Trying to keep somewhat functional, Daryl tried to tell her no, they didn't need the shots, but she had to go and give him that damned sexy smile again and the next thing he knew was he was throwing back the shot. And they did it again and again.

The more they drank, the more they flirted with each other. Gabrielle's hand was now resting on his thigh as she stood real close to him. He should have been thinking with his head, but since that was extremely clouded with alcohol, his other head …the one guys shouldn't ever think with took over.

"Oh Princess, you don't know what you doing to me," he sighed.

Gabrielle pressed her breasts up against him. "I want you country boy," she whispered in his ear.

Daryl did not hesitate as he pulled her to him so their mouths crushed together. After a minute or two they pulled apart, out of breath, but wanting more.

Much more.

Daryl asked for a beer even though he knew he really shouldn't be drinking any more. Gabrielle signaled for more shots. They drank more…they kissed more and they drank more. After that it was nothing but a big giant drunken blur.

* * *

The bright Nevada sun was pouring in through the plate glass window right onto Daryl's face. That and the pounding in his head was what finally woke him up. He had been hung over enough in his life to recognize it right away. He knew this was going to be a bad one, so he started to move slowly with his eyes barely open. What has possessed him to drink that much?

His arm hit something next to him and he gently opened his eyes to see what it was. All he saw was long black hair spread out over a female's bare back. He instantly knew it was Gabrielle. He raised the covers quickly and instantly regretted it. Fast movement was not in the cards for him …yet. But, yep… he was naked and it sure looked like she was too.

Daryl laid his head carefully back onto the pillow and tried to remember what had happened last night. The last thing he remembered was being in the bar with her. There was lots of drinking going on and kissing. Oh hell, he had kissed her and she kissed him right back. But for the life of him he couldn't remember anything after that.

Did they have sex? They were both naked so he assumed so, but with as drunk as he was he would have been surprised if he could have actually gotten it up. He shook his head without thinking and was rewarded with a blinding pain shooting through his right temple. It was sad to think that if he did have sex with Gabrielle and as incredibly hot as she was, that he didn't even remember it.

Served him right for trying to fuck Michonne's friend.

He heard some soft moans coming from her side of the bed. Slowly he watched her turn over from being on her stomach to on her back. The moans got worse. "Holy shit," she whined. "What the hell happened?"

"Think we got drunk Princess," Daryl told her.

"What the hell? Why are you in my bed!"

"You got that backwards, you're in my bed, Princess."

Gabrielle raised her head to look around the room. Her vision was a bit blurry, her head was still cloudy, but she recognized that this was not her room. "Shit. Please don't tell me that we…"

"I think we did, but I don't remember shit from last night. We're both naked, do you remember what happened?" Daryl asked her.

Gabrielle put her hand on her forehead trying to both think and hold back the pounding. A lot of last night was a complete blank. She remembered going to the bar against her better judgment because he was there. She didn't want to be alone last night and no matter how hard she tried, she was attracted to him. The booze made it a lot easier to act on her feelings.

Oh damn, she remember thinking that he was looking really good last night. That deep raspy voice of his simply drove her crazy and that combined with a large amount of alcohol was not a good combination. She sat up on the edge of the bed keeping her bare back to him. Suddenly she was overwhelmed by nausea and knew she was going to throw up. She literally ran for the bathroom barely making it.

Daryl did not miss her naked ass making a beeline for the bathroom. It was a work of art. He closed his eyes as he heard her throwing up over and over again. He did feel bad for her. Here she was sick, hung over, naked and in a kind-of-strange guy's room.

Slowly he threw his legs over the side of the bed and sat for a few minutes to get his bearings. He had a quick wave of dizziness, but that eventually passed. It was the pounding in his head that was killing him.

Daryl saw their clothes were strewn all over his room. He grabbed a pair of jeans out of his bag and slipped on a t-shirt. Then he gathered up her clothes which was pretty much just her dress, a blue lace bra with matching thong and walked over the bathroom where she was still hugging the toilet…naked.

He pulled the door closed half way and talked to her through it. "Princess, I'm gonna drop your shit inside the bathroom, okay?"

"Can you bring me a robe?"

"Ain't got one," he told her.

"Look in your closet, there should be one there from the hotel. I can't put that dress back on," she explained.

Daryl walked over to the closet he hadn't even opened and sure enough there were two white robes with the Bellagio logo on them. He took one off the hanger and brought it to the door. "I got it."

"Bring it in. I'm afraid to move," she groaned. God her head hurt, her stomach wouldn't sit still and her hips were sore. She was a mess.

"But…umm…you're…"

"Yeah, I know I'm naked. But right now that's the least of my problems and you probably saw it all anyway. Just bring me the damn robe." She didn't mean to be short with him, but now wasn't the time for him to worry about her modesty.

He most likely did see her naked, it was just too bad he couldn't remember a fucking thing. Daryl slowly pushed the door open and she turned her head to face him. Her hair was an absolute mess, her face was pale, but she still looked beautiful to him and…completely naked.

"Help me with it please. My stomach won't settle down…oh god why did we drink so much?" she cried with tears rolling down her cheeks.

Daryl didn't say anything as he helped wrap the robe around her. He couldn't stop himself from looking at her perfectly round breasts and knew that was wrong of him to do, but he couldn't help it.

As soon as Gabrielle had the robe tied around her waist, she started to retch again. Daryl pulled her hair back for her, feeling bad that he had contributed to her drinking. Unfortunately, his stomach was not completely stable, so her throwing up only made him feel like doing it more and more, until he mumbled an apology, but ran from the room. Once away, from her and the sounds and smells of the bathroom, his stomach slowly calmed down as he lay on the sofa waiting for her.

That was until he heard a pounding on his door. "Daryl, open this door right now!" Michonne demanded.

Fuck. They were busted.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

Daryl opened the door to find a concerned Michonne. Even though he was dressed, his feet were bare, his hair was a disaster and his eyes were completely bloodshot. She pushed her way past him, with Rick following sheepishly behind.

" _They were newlyweds. Shouldn't they still be in bed or something_?" he thought to himself.

"Now's not a good time, Michonne, what is it?" Daryl asked. His head was still pounding and his mouth was bone dry. He walked over to the bottles of water on the desk and drained one without stopping.

"I can't find Gabby. She's not answering her phone and she didn't come home last night. I'm worried, did you see her?"

"She's fine Michonne," he told her. Well she would be fine once she got over the hangover.

"Where is she Daryl?"

Daryl looked at Rick, who instantly got it. He didn't understand it, as he thought the two of them didn't like each other, but he got it. "Michonne, come on let's go get breakfast…"

Michonne turned to her new husband looking furious at him. "Rick, my best friend is missing and all you want to think about is eating? What is wrong with you?" She turned back to Daryl, ignoring Rick's answer. "When did you last see her, Daryl?"

"About ten minutes ago," came the response from Gabrielle. She stood at the end of the bed, still wrapped in the hotel's robe. It was completely evident where she had spent the night.

Michonne's brown eyes got huge. She looked at her friend then back at Daryl. "Oh…Oh, I'm so sorry," she started to say. "Umm…Do you want to meet us for a late breakfast?"

"Give us an hour," Daryl told her. His look had her grabbing Rick's arm as fast as she could and headed for the door.

"Damn it Rick!" she scolded.

"I tried to tell you, babe, but …." the door slammed close blocking out anything else that they were saying.

"Do you mind if I wash my face before I go and do you have a brush?" Gabrielle asked him. He could hear the regret in her tone.

"Go right ahead. Ain't got a brush, but a comb's on the night stand," he told her.

Without a word of thanks, Gabrielle headed to the bathroom again, but not before scooping the comb up off the table. The door loudly slammed behind her.

" _Great, the Princess is back_ ," he thought. " _Fuckin' great_."

Daryl walked over to get another bottle of water, he was still thirsty. Drinking always did that to him. He'd figured he'd give one to Gabrielle too as she was probably as dehydrated as he was. When he finished chugging the second bottle some papers on the dresser that caught his eye and he went over to see what they were. He didn't remember leaving anything there.

He picked them up and glanced at the top sheet. His eyes got bigger and he read it again and again. Then he looked at the sheet below it. "No!" he said out loud to the room. "We couldn't have…no fuckin' way!" But the proof was in his shaking hand.

"I'm out of here," Gabrielle said with her clothing bundled in her arm. "Let's just forget this ever happened."

"That's kinda gonna be hard, Princess," he told her.

"No it's not. You forget you know me and I'll forget I know you. It's as simple as that." The condescending attitude in her voice was like nails on a chalkboard.

"No. It. Ain't."

Gabrielle was completely embarrassed and pissed off at herself. She did the one thing she hadn't wanted to do, which was sleep with Daryl. Neither of them may remember it, but her hips didn't lie. They were sore, just like they always got when she had sex. Figures the one time she has sex in months, she can't even remember it.

"Why not?" she asked. He was being totally frustrating. What was his problem?

"Look at these?" He handed her the papers from the dresser. He saw the shock register on her face. She looked at him and then back down at the documents in her hand...a hand that was wearing a wedding ring. Daryl barely caught her as she fainted.

* * *

Gabrielle walked ahead of Daryl into the restaurant that was off the hotel lobby where they were meeting Michonne and Rick for breakfast. They both looked as good as they felt, which was pretty damn bad.

Rick glanced over at Michonne who simply shrugged her shoulders. Neither of them knew what was going on with their friends. As far as they could tell Daryl and Gabrielle were like oil and water, yet why was Gabby in Daryl's room this morning undressed and looking thoroughly disheveled. Michonne was dying to find out how that happened.

Jake pulled out the chair for his new wife, before sitting down himself. Even as bad as he felt and as confused as he was, the responsibilities of a southern gentleman he never forgot. Whether you were from the right or the wrong side of the proverbial tracks, you pulled a chair out for a lady.

"So what the hell…" Michonne started to say, but Gabrielle raised her hand to stop her.

If Gabby didn't get a cup of coffee, in the next thirty seconds she was going to die. Lucky for her the waitress saw them join the table and she was immediately there with coffee pot in hand.

"Coffee?"

"Oh God yes," Gabby sighed. "Can you leave the pot?"

"I'll bring you a carafe," the waitress volunteered. She filled Daryl and Gabrielle's cups and went off to bring back the carafe.

Daryl drank the small cup that was poured for him. " _What's with a cop and saucer_?" he wondered. " _What about good old fashioned mugs_?" That small amount of coffee was worthless

The caffeine from the coffee was already starting to take the edge off. He no longer felt as bad as he had earlier. Since his head was starting to clear, maybe he could figure out what the hell happened last night.

Michonne couldn't stand the wait any longer. How did her best friend end up in bed with Rick's best friend, when last they knew neither of them could barely stand the other, even though things were better last night? " Spill it guys. I know it's none of our business, but I don't care. How did you two end up spending the night together?"

"Michonne…" Rick said. As curious as he was, it was between Daryl and Gabrielle.

"Alcohol. Lots and lots of alcohol," Daryl said softly, his gravelly voice deeper than usual.

The waitress placed the carafe of coffee on the table and Daryl grabbed it and automatically poured Gabby and himself another cup.

"You guys drank too much and ended up in bed together. That's it?" Michonne watched Gabby lift he coffee cup and take a sip. Her eyes got wide as she saw the ring on Gabby left hand. "Oh no…you didn't!" she exclaimed.

"What? They did what?" asked a confused Rick. What did Michonne pick up on that he didn't? His new wife looked shocked, Gabby was a light shade of green, and Daryl's expression was stone cold.

Gabby reached into her purse and handed Michonne several pieces of paper. "We think we did, but we're not sure. Look those over for us Michy. Please."

Michonne knew something was really wrong. Gabby hadn't called her Michy in years. It was a childhood nickname that only came out when Gabby was feeling lost and vulnerable. She quickly looked at the papers that Gabby had handed her. The top one looked exactly like the marriage certificate that she and Rick had. The bottom was the receipt for the 'Viva Las Vegas Wedding Package' at the Graceland Wedding Chapel.

"Oh shit," she murmured.

"What?" demanded Rick.

Michonne handed him the marriage certificate as she continued to read the receipt. It listed everything that came in the five hundred dollar package, but one thing caught her eye. Michonne grabbed her phone and started to search for the website that was listed on the receipt.

Rick realized what was in his hand and his eyes automatically flashed to his best friend's. "You two got married?

"Apparently we did," drawled Daryl.

"How? Why?"

Michonne started to laugh. "I can answer the how. You got married by Elvis!" Michonne turned her phone around and showed them a picture of the two of them, standing with an overweight Elvis impersonator with a just married sign behind them." You guys are so married!"

Daryl just closed his eyes as the words he hoped weren't real… were. He had married the Princess. Those damn Jager shots were what did them in. He knew they always fucked with his head, but he had to go and match her shot for shot. This however was a complication he never expected.

"Oh man," Rick said. "What are you guys going to do?"

Gabby put her head on her hands. "I am ruined. I am absolutely ruined. The partners will never take me seriously now."

Daryl cocked his head as he looked over at Gabby. "What are you talking about?"

"How the hell can I be married to you?"

"What the fuck is wrong with me?" he demanded. Sure this was a huge unexpected complication, and they would sort it out, but it wasn't like he was a serial killer or anything.

Gabrielle raised her head from her hands. "You don't have a credit card, you don't know how to order in a restaurant, plus you're some sort of biker. And me…me… married to a lowly mechanic? You've got to be kidding me. I could just see you at a one of our corporate dinners, I'd be completely embarrassed. I am so screwed."

Daryl stood up so abruptly his chair fell over in the process. He had never felt so belittled and humiliated in his life. He hated her in that moment and stalked out of the room before he did something he'd regret even more than marrying her.

Rick couldn't believe what she had just said to his friend. Daryl didn't deserve it, no one did. He glared hard at Gabrielle who was clueless on the damage she had just done. He looked over at his wife who was sitting there in shock. Her eyes met his. "I want her gone, Michonne. Gone!" He waited until she nodded before taking off after Daryl.

"What is his problem?" Gabrielle asked.

"What is his problem? What is yours?" asked an astonished Michonne.

"My problem is that I married a redneck mechanic I don't even know! So why am I getting the attitude?"

"Because that redneck mechanic is my good friend and you just were as cruel as you could be to him. I knew life in Atlanta was changing you, but I don't even recognize you anymore! Gabrielle Parson's you are a snob and a world class bitch. I'm embarrassed to ever have called you a friend. Thanks for ruining my wedding trip, now get the hell out of my life!" Michonne was mad and disappointed at the same time. The person that Gabrielle had turned into was no one that she wanted to associate with any longer. She was sorry she ever did.

She got up to leave the table, but Gabrielle grabbed her arm. "Why are you mad at me?"

"If you can't figure that out, then I feel sorry for you. Don't call me, text me or anything until you apologize to Daryl. Then maybe …maybe I'll talk to you again." Michonne shook her arm free and went to find the two most important men in her life.

* * *

 **A/N - I know at least one person guessed this, but there's a whole lot more twists and turns to come. Thanks for reading! Drop me a review. Spread the word if you like the story. See ya on Thursday!**


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

Daryl was pacing back and forth outside the Bellagio next to their Dancing Fountains. The cold dark fury he was feeling was clearly evident all over his face. Tourists skirted around him his anger flowed off him in waves. He took drag after drag on his cigarette as it gave his one hand something to do. The other was repeated being clenched into a fist, like he was getting ready to hit something…someone.

He was furious and completely embarrassed. He didn't remember the last time he was ever this mad. It was even worse than the motel room argument they had. How dare she put him down that way and in front of his closest friends!

No, he wasn't college educated or ate in fancy-ass restaurants, but he worked hard and treated people with respect. She was nothing but a fuckin' snobby bitch. He had been stupid and Daryl hated being stupid. He had her figured out to start, but then she had to go and play nice and he fuckin' fell for her act. He'll admit to being stupid, but he'd be damned if he would ever fall for her crap again.

Great he was married to a woman who he hated. So typical for a Dixon.

Rick ran out the front door of the hotel looking for Daryl. He searched to the left, then to the right before walking a little bit further, and then he saw him. " _Thank Go_ d," he murmured when he saw him smoking by the fountains. He walked over to Daryl and touched his arm. Rick took a step back as Daryl whirled around ready for a fight.

"Easy Daryl…easy. It's just me."

When Daryl saw that it was Rick, he relaxed. Their eyes met and he just shook his head.

"She is so far out of line, I couldn't believe it. The shit she said was…just wrong, so fucking wrong. I'd take ten of you any day compared to one of her, you know that right?" Rick told him.

"Only one other person thought I was a worthless piece of crap and that was my old man, but at least he didn't humiliate me in public. I'm sorry, man. I can't be around her. I …I just can't." Daryl had never ever considered hitting a woman before, it wasn't in his nature, but until he calmed down he didn't trust himself around Gabrielle.

Rick put his hand on his friend's shoulder. "I don't want anything to do with her either. I told Michonne to deal with her and get her out of here. She has no place in our lives."

"I appreciate that Rick, but she's Michonne's friend. I can't ask you to do that," Daryl said. That his friend was so loyal, meant the world to him, but it wasn't fair to Michonne.

"Oh yes you can," replied Michonne as she joined the men. "I want nothing to do with that person in there. That's not the Gabby I grew up with. She's turned into a person that I don't even recognize anymore." Michonne took a step towards Daryl and wrapped her arms around him. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry, Daryl."

Michonne didn't know what to do. Daryl was furious and had every right to be so. She had known him for a couple years now and had never seen his eyes looking so deadly, so cold, yet hurt at the same time. She put her arm around him and rested her head in his shoulder. He just stayed stiff under her touch.

The love he felt radiating from Michonne touched him. Rick had found himself a wonderful woman. He on the other hand married a viper. "It's not your fault, don't worry about it. Hopefully we can get rid this stupid mistake we made pretty quick."

"The sooner the better," Michonne agreed. "You really don't remember any of that from last night?"

Daryl rolled his eye at her. "Do you really think if I was in my right mind I would have married someone like her? Even if we got along, she is so outta my fuckin' league, it would never work."

"Daryl," Michonne said softly. He always underestimates himself.

"C'mon. She lives a completely different lifestyle than I do. I just about make my rent every month and she flies first class with designer luggage. She looks like a god dammed Victoria Secret model, for fucks sake, Michonne. Do I look like I belong with in that life? Hell no." Daryl didn't know if he was trying to explain the differences so that Michonne would understand or that he would.

"I get what you are saying. It's just too bad because she was never this way growing up. In fact you two would be surprised on what you have in common." Michonne could see that it was time to change the subject. They all needed to forget about Gabrielle, at least for now. "So what shall the three of us do today?"

"Forget about me, it's your honeymoon," Daryl told them. He didn't want to be the third wheel today. It was bad enough that this morning was a total disaster.

"No way, man" Rick said. "You're hanging with us today."

Daryl thought about it for a minute. He looked out over the fountains that made no sense to him. Nothing in Las Vegas was making any sense at all. He chewed on his bottom lip while deciding what to do. If the newlyweds wanted him to hang with them, who was he to say no. It was better than wallowing in his hotel room

So that's what he did. The three of them spent the day together checking out a few of the casinos, shops and walked around the Las Vegas Strip. They took a taxi to The Hard Rock and had lunch there. Just before they left, Daryl put ten dollars in a slot machine and on his very last pull, he ended up winning a little over five hundred dollars. He looked around in shock on what was happening. Lights were flashing and he was clueless until the slot attendant came over to help him. He was completely surprised by the amount and it felt good to have decent spending money in his pocket for once.

Rick and Michonne had planned to have a romantic dinner for two that night, so Daryl was on his own. He was actually happy to get some time for himself. He had a lot to think through. Daryl dropped down on the bed and put his hand behind his head. The last time he was here he wasn't alone. He certainly was now.

Some of last night had started to come back to him in little flashes. It was her idea to go for the drive and Gabrielle hired the hotel limousine to take them out. There was a lot of making out going on in the car and hands touching places they had no business touching. The driver was just told to keep driving so he was making the rounds throughout the city.

He remembered how good it was kissing her. The fire he felt the second her lips touched his was something he had never felt before. He knew he was drunk, but some things you just don't forget. It may have taken him a little bit to remember, but he did. He hated her, but he wanted her at the same time and that was fucking with his head.

Daryl didn't remember whose idea it was to stop, but the car did outside wedding chapel that had the big picture of Elvis. Even that drunk he should have known better, but apparently he didn't. They had the marriage certificate to prove it and also that damn photo with the man that did not even look like Elvis on a bad day.

He was going to have to talk to Gabrielle at some point soon. They needed to get divorced or annulled, however that worked. He just had no idea where to start.

The rumbling of his stomach reminded him that he hadn't eaten dinner plus the room was starting to close in on him. It was time to get out of there. Daryl grabbed his wallet and room key and headed back to the place that started it all last night…the bar. And the same bartender was still behind the bar, maybe he'd know more of what happened last night.

"Hey Daryl, welcome back!" the bartender smiled.

Good thing he wore a name tag or Daryl would never have remembered his name. "Hey Joe."

"What'll you have tonight?"

"Pour me a Bud and no matter what, don't give me a shot of anything. Last night 'bout killed me. Order me a burger too."

Joe smiled as he poured the beer. "You looked like you were having a good night."

"You have no idea," Daryl told him shaking his head. He took a sip of his beer. "I fucked up so bad last night."

"You blew it with the hot babe? Gabrielle, right?"

"If you call waking up to her this morning...naked and married blowing it. I was so drunk that I married someone I barely knew and I don't even remember it, man. How fucked up is that?" It actually felt good to talk about to Joe. Daryl wasn't one to 'share' or talk about himself much, but he just needed and impartial person to talk to.

"Dude, I can't believe you did that. She's so hot!" Joe was pouring drinks while talking to Daryl. He couldn't believe what he just heard. Gabrielle was drop dead gorgeous and Daryl had managed to snag her good. Why didn't shit like that happen to him? "Did you know her before coming here?"

Daryl took another sip of beer and popped a handful of pretzels into his mouth that were in a bowl on the bar. He was starving. "She's my friend's wife's best friend or at least she used to be. She came for the wedding like I did."

"Used to be?"

"Yep. Look at me man, does it look like I should be with a woman who could be a damn Victoria Secret model? Fuck no, but this morning when we figured out what had happened, she was none too happy to be shackled with a loser like me. Her words were fuckin' brutal. I didn't take being called 'an embarrassment' too well and neither did my friends. Haven't talked to her since." Daryl downed the rest of his beer. He felt like getting lit again tonight, but that wouldn't solve his problems. Never did.

After a few minutes of wallowing in the mess his life had become, he asked, "Hey Joe, how's that burger coming?

"I'll check on it, you want another beer?"

"Hell yeah," Daryl told him.

Joe went off to check on his dinner and Daryl casually looked around the bar. It was not the usual dive bar he was used to. He had not taken the time on his previous visits to see how nice it was. Plus the caliber of people in it was different. No ratty jeans and old t-shirts here, except on him. Just another place in a long list of places that he just did not belong. He was so ready to get back home to Georgia.

He turned back to the bar just in time for Joe to slide the plate with his dinner in front of him. Daryl looked at the large size cheeseburger and knew it was going to be good. He put ketchup on it and drenched his fries. The first bite told him this was one of the best burgers he had ever had.

Joe placed a newly poured beer in front of him. "This one's on me," he told him. Joe knew he should have cut them off last night, but since he knew Daryl was staying at the Bellagio he didn't see any harm. He felt a little to blame for what happened.

Daryl nodded his thanks as he devoured his dinner. He didn't realize how hungry he was and this was a top notch cheeseburger. He wiped his mouth on the napkin and downed half the beer. He was done.

Joe was wiping down a glass at the end of the bar and looked up to see who was walking in the door. He quickly moved in front of Daryl. "You got the wife coming up behind you," he warned him in a quiet voice.

"Fuck."

Daryl kept facing the bar and waited for her to approach him. His heart started beating faster, so he took another sip of beer.

He felt her body heat before he saw her. Another flashback hit him at that instant of them in bed naked and sweaty and he was inside of her pumping away. " _Bad timing to finally remember that_ ," he said to himself. While he regretted what had happened, his dick sure didn't, because it was starting to come alive. Just what he didn't need right now.

Gabrielle had been looking for him for a while. He was not in his room or answering the cell number he had given her. She figured he was avoiding her…big time and she did not blame him at all.

She had spent a good portion of her day just sitting in her room wondering what had happened to her. Sure she was hung over this morning….really hung over, but that did not excuse the way she treated him.

It was a shock to find out what they did last night. She had always had poor judgement when she drank and she should have known better. Hadn't she learned her lesson all those years ago as a teen? Apparently not.

They were both at fault, not just him. This morning she took her shock and anger out on him and the words she said were hurtful and cruel. That it took Michonne walking out on her and their friendship to make her realize it, showed how far she had fallen. Living in the big corporate world in Atlanta had not made her a better person like she had planned, no it had not. It made her into an uncaring, snobby bitch that no one wanted.

While Daryl was not the husband she would have chosen for herself, he was in fact her legal husband…at least for now. He had done nothing to deserve her treatment of him and she knew she owed him an apology. Then they needed to figure out what they were going to do.

When she looked in the bar she immediately saw his strong back and longish hair. As she walked over to him, her heart started to race. She convinced herself it was because of the situation between them and it had nothing to do with the attraction she kept denying she had to him. He wasn't your classically good looking guy, he was more and different and she liked that. Actually she liked that a little too much.

Gabrielle quietly slipped onto the bar stool next to him. He didn't turn to look at her, but just kept drinking. She placed a hand on his arm and slowly Daryl turned his head to look at her. The anger she saw in his blue eyes startled her, but she quickly pulled herself together.

"We need to talk," was all she said.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

Daryl looked down at the slender hand on his arm and then back up into Gabrielle's troubled eyes. The coldness she saw in them scared her. She removed the hand that was touching him and watched him slowly finish his beer.

"Daryl, we need to talk," she said again.

"Heard ya the first time, Princess. Hadda finish my beer," he told her in that slow raspy Georgia drawl of his.

Gabrielle shook her head. "After last night you haven't had enough to drink?"

Daryl looked over at Joe, who has a slight smirk on his face. "She's nagging me already, man."

Joe laughed and slid him his check for the burger and beer. Daryl looked at the amount and was shocked at the prices. Vegas was one expensive place to be, but with the extra money he had won at the casino it wasn't that bad. He threw a couple of twenties down and stood up.

"Let's go," he said to Gabrielle, His voice was flat and unemotional. He got up and headed out the door not even looking back to see if she was following him.

Daryl stopped once he was almost at the hotel lobby. It was full of people. He turned to Gabrielle, "Where?"

Gabrielle hadn't though that far ahead. She had spent half the night looking for him and now that she did find him she didn't know what to do. The lobby was way too crowded for what they needed to talk about, they needed a private area. She suggested the first thing that came to her mind, "My suite?"

Daryl's stone cold expression lightened just a bit. "Trying to get me in bed again, Princess?" It was almost more a suggestion, than a question.

Her face instantly flushed red in embarrassment. No she was not thinking that, at least when she suggested the room she hadn't been, but why did he have to go and say it, because now she was definitely thinking about it. "No, I'm not," she lied. "It was the first place I can think of that's private. We can talk in the sitting room. That's far from the bed."

Together they headed to the bank of elevators that solely brought guests up and down to their rooms. Neither said a word as they waited for one to arrive. Once the door closed, Gabrielle glanced over at Daryl and saw he leaning up against the elevator wall with that smirk still on his face. "Get over yourself," she snapped at him.

Daryl didn't answer her. He continued to lean one shoulder against the elevator wall as they waited to arrive at her floor. Once again she was dressed to kill. She wore an off the shoulder ivory colored blouse that had enough buttons undone to make a man beg for more. Her long legs were showcased in tight black jeans and the black stilettos she wore brought her up to his height. He was greatly enjoying the view.

He was watching Gabrielle stare straight ahead, not daring to look at him at all. He loved knowing she was on edge. For him to survive this with a little dignity, he had to try to keep the upper hand.

When the elevator finally stopped, Gabrielle exited first and Daryl followed her until they arrived in front of a set of double doors. It did not get by him that her ass looked perfect in those jeans. She swiped the key card and pushed inside. Daryl subtlety adjusted himself as his body was reacting to her more than he liked.

The room was twice as big as his, maybe more. Daryl walked down a short hall that opened up into a large spacious living room. Modern couches and chairs took up the room with brown leather and stainless steel the color palate throughout. Blue accents scattered about brought a vibrancy to the space. Gabrielle had a fully stocked bar over to the left with large floor to ceiling windows that looked out over the Strip. The flashing lights from the city threw bright spots of color all over the room. To the right he saw the open door that led to the bedroom. He had no plans on going in there tonight.

"Damn, Princess you sure know how to upstage everyone," he said taking a seat on the sofa. Daryl's arm ran along the back cushion and his contempt plainly evident on his face.

"What are you talking about?" asked Gabrielle clearly confused.

"Rick, Michonne and me are just in normal rooms, but you couldn't do that, could you? No, you had to show us how much better you are by getting a fuckin' suite. Did it ever occur to you that this woulda been a nice upgrade to give the newlyweds, instead of showing us how much money you have?" If he ever gave a second thought to seeing if this sham of a marriage had a chance, it just flew out the window. He did not respect her and no matter how hot she was, he drew the line there.

Gabrielle sat down on the cold leather cushion of the sofa and laid her lead back. Tears dropped from the corner of her closed eyes. "I am such a bad friend and bad person, no wonder everyone hates me." She did not care that the tears were ruining her carefully applied makeup.

Gabrielle turned her head to look at Daryl. "I was so jealous of her getting married and making me come to Las Vegas, that I didn't even think to upgrade their room. Maybe I wanted to show her up or maybe I only think about myself, but either way I completely failed at supporting my best friend."

Daryl watched her admit to her mistake when it came to Michonne. It surprised him, but he wasn't going to let her know that. "Seems like you and Michonne are two very different people, I don't get the friendship," he told her.

Gabrielle turned away from him and looked up at the ceiling. "This is supposed to be the new improved me." She heard Daryl snicker, but kept talking. "I was different when Michy and I grew up. I was twelve when we met in school. My Mama had died and I had to live with my grandmother who I had never met. I went from being dirt poor, but loved to living with a cold, overly religious woman who barely tolerated me. Michonne and her family, became my second family. It didn't matter that they were black and I wasn't. She had the family I had always wanted."

" _Sounds familiar_ ," Daryl thought.

"We went to high school together and then college. I worked every free minute I wasn't studying to pay for school. My grandmother never gave me a damn dime. She died my junior year and left everything she had to her church. Her house, the money I never knew she had…everything went to that fucking church of hers. Her own flesh and blood got nothing. That's when I decided that I was never going back to Senoia and to hell with anyone but myself."

While Gabrielle paused, Daryl now understood why Michonne said they both had a lot in common. They both grew up poor and unloved, being raised by people that had no business raising kids. They were each were abused, just in different ways. She was as messed up as he was.

"So it was the fancy job in the big city that did it?" he asked.

"I never wanted to see that naïve small town country girl I was again. That was years ago and what do I have to show for it? A ruthless job, a great condo in the city, but no one it share it with and no real friends to speak of except Michonne who now hates me, hell I hate me." Gabrielle finally turned her head to look at Daryl, but she quickly looked away.

Gabrielle sat up straighter and turned her body to face him. "I've treated you like shit since I met you and you didn't deserve that." Gabrielle hadn't the courage to meet his eyes, until she felt his foot nudge hers.

Again she felt the tears start to fall, but she kept on going this time looking at him. "Daryl, I am so sorry for that I said this morning. I'd like to blame it on the hangover, but I can't. All I could think about was me and my career and not how this was also affecting you. I am a snob, everyone at work is a snob and all I could think of is what they were going to think of me. You didn't deserve that and…I'm sorry."

Daryl had not said a word letting her get everything out in the open. Her honesty surprised him. He had not expected it. He thought she would be demanding a divorce and blaming all of this on him. Yeah, he was definitely surprised. Her admissions gave him more insight to what made her tick. The more she talked, the more he wanted to hear. She had the good job, made plenty of money, but what did she have to show for it? He at least had a few people who he knew cared what happened to him. He may not have much in his life, but he had that.

He was surprised that he felt bad for her and that softened him towards Gabrielle…his wife. Shit did that sound weird. "Thanks. What we gonna do about…us?"

Gabrielle shrugged her shoulders, "I guess we get a divorce. I can look into it when we get back."

Daryl laughed. It was something he didn't do often. "We certainly screwed up our lives didn't we Princess?"

"We sure as hell did. Who marries a complete stranger?" It was still unbelievable that she had done that. What had she been thinking?

"Hey, we knew each other for almost two days. Man, I would love to be able to throw you in my brother's face," he said with wishful thinking. Merle wouldn't believe that he could get a hot babe like Gabrielle was. Then again, she was not really his to begin with.

"Why's that?"

"Merle's older than me and thinks he knows everything. He's sucks as a brother, always in trouble and doesn't ever fuckin' think before he opens his mouth. He's my brother so I hung with him, but about a year ago we had a pretty bad fight and I left. Haven't seen him since even though he's tried. Just like my old man, he always told me I'd never amount to anything. I may not be much, but I got myself a full time job, a place to call my own and temporarily…an extremely hot wife who's proving to be a handful," he smirked.

"A handful!" Gabrielle said in mock outrage. "I am definitely not a handful. I am…"

"You're what?" he asked his voice low and sexy. Daryl knew he was playing with fire, but he couldn't stop himself. He was no longer mad at her, her apology was sincere and he appreciated that. Here he was alone with her…his wife and she was absolutely fuckin' gorgeous and she was his. He just didn't know how she felt about him.

Gabrielle knew flirting when she saw it, but she never expected it from Daryl. If she had not been so attracted to him from the start, maybe she would have not been such a bitch to everyone. There was something about him that turned her emotions upside down. He made her want him without even trying.

The atmosphere in the room had definitely changed. Anger and sadness was replaced by curiosity and desire. Gabrielle wondered if he wanted her as much as she wanted him? She was ready to find out.

Daryl noticed that Gabrielle's eyes now sparkled instead of looking sad. She moved closer to him on the sofa until she was just inches away. Her shirt slipped a little further off her shoulder.

"I'm way more than a handful, Daryl. Think you can handle it?" she said in a seductive tone. Her mouth moved so close to his that he could feel her breath.

"Princess, are you sure about this?" he asked as he kissed her lightly. That small taste had him drunk for more. He prayed she would answer yes.

"I've wanted you since I first saw you at the airport, hell yeah I am so sure about this." Gabrielle didn't allow him a moment to think. She pressed her lips to his before he could open his mouth in protest, but there was no way Daryl was going to stop unless she asked him to.

Electricity zipped all the way to Gabrielle's toes. His fingers slid along her jawline and damn if a little moan didn't escape from her. Daryl pulled her against his chest and his fingers got lost in her long luxurious hair.

Their mouths explored each other, never staying in one place too long as there was too much to memorize. They were desperate for each other, but neither knew how long this would last. Could you have a one night stand with your spouse?

Gabrielle pulled away first and Daryl instantly worried that she changing he mind. The look on her face told him otherwise. As she sat up on him, she ground her hips into his feeling how much he wanted her. "C'mon," she said taking his hand. She could feel the rough calluses on his fingers.

"Where?" he groaned. He was happy right where he was.

"There's a huge king size bed in the other room, there no need to us to squeeze onto the sofa." Gabrielle got up and started to walk away towards the bedroom. Daryl watched in awe. No way someone as gorgeous as her should want him, but she did. Even if it was just this once, he was going to make the most if it.

His heart started to beat faster as she slipped out of her shirt on the way to the bed, then it was her pants that just flowed off her. He wasn't sure how she managed to do that since they were skin tight, but she did. By the time he was standing and took a step towards her, her sexy ivory lace bra lay just inside the doorway. He ran after her and when he made it to the room, there she was naked in the bed…just waiting for him. He did the only thing he could…which was get naked as fast as he could.

* * *

.

 **A/N- Thank you to everyone who is reading TAC. The numbers just grow everyday. I appreciate all of the reviews! Keep them coming! For any new readers to my work I'll explain how I post chapters. You get a new chapter every Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday. You don't have to worry about writer's block or me getting too busy or bored. Nothing worse than a story that never gets finished or takes two months for the next chapter. My stories are finished.** **I only post when they are completely done, so my readers get the stories in a timely consistent manner. It's different than most writers, but benefits you all.**

 **Enjoy!**

 **Walker Witch**


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

Daryl cursed the fact that he always wore boots. They were impossible to get pants off over them and he was hopping around the damn room like a damn horny rabbit. He finally landed on the end of the bed, his fumbling fingers turning the laces on his boots into knots. God he felt like such an idiot.

Gabrielle was trying to hold back the laughter but it was hard. He was so adorable cursing out his boots that he couldn't get off. She slid off the bed to help him. "Here, let me do it," she laughed.

Daryl laid back on his elbows watching her undo the knots he had created in his haste. She pulled one boot off then the other while her unbelievable body was there in all its glory for him to see. He about swallowed his tongue when he saw that she kept herself bare down below. He had never been with a woman that did that before. If he was hard from them making out on the couch, he was rock hard now. Gabrielle quickly pulled his socks off, but he was still mostly dressed.

He stood up now and with her in bare feet she was the perfect height for him, so he lowered his mouth to hers as he unbuckled his pants and they dropped at his ankles. Gabrielle clawed at his t-shirt bringing it up over his head and tossed it away. She felt him gently stiffen and did not understand why. It was only his shirt.

His underwear was pushed over his hips, momentarily catching on his hard shaft before it slipped down his legs and he stepped out of both his pants and boxer briefs at the same time. It seems his new wife was eager and not afraid to take the lead. He found he liked that. Usually aggressive woman turned him off for the most part, but he was certainly enjoying it right now.

They were still standing at the end of the bed, their mouths hungrily devouring each other. Daryl couldn't remember when he had wanted a woman as bad as he did Gabrielle. He did not do relationships as they expected too much out of him, he did not date because he never found anyone that interested him for more than a few hours and he sure as hell never thought he would ever get married. Sex came when he when he went looking for it and that was usually after drinking at a bar. He had never been with a woman like Gabrielle ever before.

This time he was the one that broke the kisses that left them out of breath. He pulled her onto the bed so they were lying side by side. Gabrielle threw a shapely leg over his, pulling him closer. His fingers stroked her smooth stunning face trying to memorize every inch of it. He knew they weren't meant to be together forever like Rick and Michonne were, so he had to touch, taste and remember every part of her while he could.

Finally, his hand moved down so it touched the swell of her breast and he saw her close her eyes in anticipation of what was to come. He made her wait by caressing the outer curve with his finger tips and not getting near her nipple, not just yet. When Daryl finally gave in, they both moaned in ecstasy. When his mouth replaced his hand, Gabrielle cried out softly, "Oh God."

Daryl was making Gabrielle feel things that she never thought possible. Sure she loved sex, but she had never been this worked up this quickly before ever. If he kept this up she may very well come by just his mouth on her breast. He tugged, teased and suckled her so that she was practically writhing on the bed. Where had he been all her life?

Gabrielle felt the need to explore herself. Her hand that had been lightly caressing his shoulder and back now moved lower and lower. She took his erection that had been pressing up against her into her hand. Soon her fingers were wrapped around its length and now he was the one moaning his approval.

Daryl's hand replaced his mouth on her breast as his lips sought hers once again. Then his hand moved from her breast and lightly skimmed her body all the way down until it touched the wetness between her legs. To feel the evidence of how much she wanted him raised his need for her even more.

She wanted him inside of her so bad she was about to scream to him to please fuck her. Still holding onto his rock hard shaft, Gabrielle increased the rhythm of her strokes. Harder and faster, just like she wanted him. Then she felt one finger enter her followed by a second. " _If his hand feels that good, what will his dick feel like inside of me?_ " she wondered. Every touch and everything he tried was perfect. How did he know her? How could he know where and how to touch her that drove her wild? No one else ever made her feel this way.

Daryl was about at the end of his rope. Gabrielle's hand felt incredible on his dick, but he didn't want to come in her hand, he had to come inside of her. He needed to be in her, with her at…one with her. He removed his fingers from inside of her, but not before he paid some attention to her clit, which had Gabrielle pressing her body into his hand for more. He was ready to give her more, but it wasn't going to be with his hand.

Daryl shifted his body so he was on top of Gabrielle, his strong arms holding him up. He was about to move to enter her, when he suddenly thought about birth control. He wasn't wearing a condom, nor had he last night in his drunken stupor.

"Shit, Princess. I don't have any condoms," he groaned.

"Don't worry," she said biting his shoulder. "I'm on the pill."

"You sure? What about…other stuff? "

"I'm clean and it's been a while for me. You?"

"Always used a condom. This will be a first for me without one," he told her. The head of his cock was rubbing up against her wetness as he waited for Gabrielle. He was dying. "So, you're sure?"

"Very, just get inside of me… now."

Daryl moved his hands under her hips and pulled her up against him, with one sure thrust he entered her so fully she shattered with intensity that had her crying out his name. They easily found a hard rhythm that had them moving like two people who had done this together many times before, instead of it being their first time together… sober.

He knew he was not going to last long and he held out for as long as he could, but Gabrielle turned him on as no other woman ever had. His breathing deepened as did hers and knew he was on the verge of coming and apparently so was she.

"Oh God, Daryl...I'm going to…" Gabrielle never got to finish what she was saying as her orgasm rolled over her in wave after wave. Then she did something she would have sworn never to do and just let her self and body go. It was the first time she completely surrendered herself to surges of pleasure flowing through her body. It was incredible.

Once Daryl realized that Gabrielle was coming and he felt her slick walls tighten against him, he stopped holding back and just let himself join her in the most intense climax that either of them had ever experienced. Eventually, he collapsed on top of her exhausted and completely out of breath.

Neither of them moved for a couple minutes, just lying together not ready to break that bond. Finally, Daryl slid off her and cradled Gabrielle in his arms. Another first for him, contact like this after sex was not for him. He was usually pulling on his pants, thanking the skank and hightailing it home before she could get any ideas. Now he couldn't imagine not holding onto her.

"Wow," was all Gabrielle could say.

"Yeah, fuckin' wow."

"We got to do that again," she laughed.

"Give me a few minutes and I definitely want to do that again," he sighed. God, he wished he was in his twenties instead of late thirties. He recovered quicker back then.

"I'll be right back," Gabrielle told him dropping a sensual kiss on his lips. She went into the bathroom to clean up and give herself a minute to think. Now that she had him once, she couldn't imagine not being with him over and over again. They were technically married, but what did that mean to them? They barely knew each other.

She knew she had time to figure this out and she wanted tonight, this one night to be special with for them. No problems, no inhibitions and no outside world influencing them. Just the two of them.

Gabrielle put the smile back on her face and headed back to Daryl. She turned off the lights and together they slid under the covers to snuggle. Now was the time to hold, to caress and to just be together. Words would come later. They had to.

Daryl loved the feeling of Gabrielle cradled in his arms. She fit perfectly, like no other. What crazy set of circumstances had brought them together like this? A woman from a lifestyle so foreign from his was naked in his arms after the best sex he had ever had. And she was his wife. Maybe they should not be so hasty in seeing about getting a divorce. Maybe they just need time to adjust and have a chance. All he wanted was a chance with her to see if this would work. That was not too much to ask for, was it?

He let his fingertips glide across her breast, before stopping at her nipple. It puckered at his touch as it came to life, so did his dick. He was ready to be inside of her again and again and again. He looked down at her closed eyes and realized that she soft steady breathing wasn't just Gabrielle relaxing, she had in fact fallen asleep. So Daryl pulled her a little tighter and closed his eyes too. It didn't take long for him to escape into the abyss of sleep with his wife.


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

Daryl woke up feeling great. He didn't know the last time he felt this good and was this happy. He was on his back, so he rolled over to be next to Gabrielle, but all that was there was an empty bed. He looked over at the bathroom door and saw it was closed so he figured she was in there.

It wasn't a dream. He and Gabrielle had worked out their differences and spent an incredible night together. She woke him up during the middle of the night to have sex again and if possible it was even better than before. Just thinking about it and her tits and her firm ass had him hard all over again.

The sheet was tented up with his erection. He was more than ready.

"Hey Princess, I could use some help," he called out.

She didn't answer him. So he tried again. "Princess? Got somethin' here for ya." When she didn't answer him again he got nervous and flung the sheets off. What if she was sick or hurt? Daryl pushed open the bathroom door and saw the room was empty. So was the counter top.

He quickly ran to the living room and no one was there. The suite was eerily quiet. He had a bad feeling about this and until he opened her closet, did the truth slam into him. She was gone. How did she get everything packed and out of there while he slept?

Now he was pissed.

She left without talking to him? Without saying goodbye? Without any type of fucking explanation? That wasn't right. He deserved more and she took the cowardly way out.

Daryl got up looking for something to throw, something to hurt like he was hurting when he noticed an envelope propped up on the nightstand on his side of the bed.

He opened it and saw that she had left him a message.

* * *

 _ **Daryl,**_

 _ **I'm sorry that I am taking the easy way out. You are too tempting to me and as much**_

 _ **as I want you, there is no place in my life for a guy like you. It is killing me to leave, but**_

 _ **I don't have a choice. Take care of yourself and I'll have my lawyer contact you about**_

 _ **the divorce. You deserve someone who will love you unconditionally and that can't be me.**_

 _ **Princess**_

* * *

Apparently last night meant nothing to her. He balled up the note and threw it across the room. He couldn't even have twenty four hours of fucking happiness in his life, could he? He was stupid, so fucking stupid to think he stood a chance with her. Hell no, the Princess felt he was good enough to fuck last night, but not good enough to go home with.

"Fuck her, fuck everything!" he yelled as he tugged on his pants. "Fuckin' Bitch!"

Michonne had her hand up to knock on Gabrielle's door when she heard yelling from inside the room. She turned to look at Rick, "Was that Daryl?"

She didn't even wait for her husband to answer her as she knocked loudly on the door. "Daryl! Open this door! Daryl!"

The door flew open and Michonne took a step back in surprise. Daryl stormed away from the door to find his shirt. Michonne and Rick followed him into the suite. They both noticed the empty room and mussed up bed beyond.

"Where is Gabby?" Michonne asked.

"Hell if I know!" Daryl said throwing up his arms. As he tugged on his shirt all he could hear in his head over and over again was " _Stupid! Stupid! Stupid_!" He grabbed his boots and socks and started to leave.

Michonne grabbed him by the arm, "Oh no you don't! Put your ass in that chair and tell me what the hell happened? Now!"

Daryl stopped at the door and took a deep breath. He was going to have to tell them sooner or later, might as well get it done now. "Fine," he answered. "God damn bossy females," he muttered under his breath.

"Got that right." Michonne was sitting on the sofa with Rick standing by a chair, she patted the cushion next to her for Daryl to sit down on.

"You said the chair!" he scowled.

Michonne just smiled at him and reached her hand out for him to take. He sat down next to her dropping his boots on the floor. She knew something was really wrong. Daryl never acted out this way. God what had Gabby done now?

"What happened Daryl?" she asked him a soft voice. "I can tell you spent the night here, but last we knew you wanted nothing to do with Gabby." As calm as Michonne was being, it was really starting to piss her off that Daryl and Gabrielle were causing so much drama during a time when all she wanted to be was happy.

"It fuckin' shoulda stayed that way too." Daryl told them how last night he had gone to the bar to get something to eat and she found him there. That she wanted to talk to him and he knew that they would have to sooner or later so he might as well get it over with. Gabrielle had suggested her suite as it was private so they came up here.

"She apologized to me for what she said and how she acted, she apologized for putting herself before everyone else and all that shit. She really sounded sorry and she was crying. I believed her and forgave her. Hell I acted like a dick for years because of Merle and Rick put up with me, so who was I to hold a grudge. Right?"

Rick nodded that he understood.

"Then I guess we started talking and flirting with each other."

Rick chuckled, "You flirted? Didn't think you knew what that was, man."

Michonne smacked him on the knee. "You be quiet," she admonished Rick. Daryl was just getting to the good stuff and she did not need Rick sidetracking him. "Go on Daryl."

"I can't believe I'm telling you guys this shit. Okay, flirting lead to kissing and that lead to the bed. She told me that she had a thing for me since the airport, and she is hot as hell so we both were game. But sometime during the sex, that all changed. I know it did. She felt it and I did. Thought maybe we had a chance to see if this marriage thing would work. But I woke up this morning and she was gone. Packed up and cleared out while I was sleeping. Fuckin' bitch." He could only blame himself, he fell for her all on his own. He knew what she was capable of and he had to go and fall for her anyway. She must be laughing at him all the way home.

"She just upped and left you? No goodbye, nothing not even a note?" Michonne asked.

This was all her fault. She never should have invited Gabby to the wedding. Sure she was her best friend, but she didn't fit in with the Rick and Daryl. Now Gabby had gone and hurt one of her good friends not once, but twice. What was wrong with her? This was the icing on the cake, she had to wash her hands of her. Gabby just hurt too many people.

"Yeah, she left a note," Daryl remembered. "I threw it somewhere in this room."

"Rick?"

"Already on it, Babe." It didn't take Rick long to find the balled up piece of paper. He picked it up and handed it to Daryl, who indicated for him to give it to Michonne.

She read it twice, before giving it to Rick. "I know what happened."

"What? Because I'm sure fuckin' clueless," Daryl sighed.

"She's scared. She is absolutely scared of you," Michonne told him.

Daryl jumped up from the sofa. "What the fuck! I didn't do anything to hurt her. I would never hurt a woman!"

"Not that type of scared, Daryl. Let me explain." Michonne had him sit down again so she could easily talk to him. This was actually a good thing that had happened. "She's scared of her feelings towards you. You were more than a one night stand and she's afraid that the more you two are together, the more she's falling for you and you don't fit in the stupid tidy box she set up for her life. Your lives are very different and you both acknowledged that, but chemistry says otherwise. Hell you can't stay away from each other."

Daryl bowed his head as he took in what she was saying. "Look at Rick and me," she said continuing. "A white southern cop with a black wife with dreads, that shouldn't work, but it does. It's chemistry all over again. We made it work and we will continue to make it work, because we want this. There's plenty of people that talk behind our backs, but we don't care. We love each other and that's all we need. Gabby needs to step out of her box and see what could happen between you two. Getting married may be the best thing that ever happened to you." They may not see it yet, but Daryl and Gabrielle were perfect for each other.

Rick mumbled, "Never, say never."

"Shut up Rick," Michonne and Daryl said at the same time, but both for different reasons. Michonne didn't want him interrupting and Daryl didn't want him reminding him that he said he was never getting married.

Daryl shook his head. He understood what she was saying, but he wasn't sure he agreed with it. Yeah, he had started to feel something for Gabrielle, but he doubted she felt anything for him except lust. She had her fill of the redneck and took off like he had in the middle the night all those times. For the first time he saw it from the woman's point of view and he didn't like it. He sure didn't like himself right then.

"I don't need to be married to someone like her. If she don't like who I am, then fuck her."

"I think you already did that," drawled Rick.

Michonne rolled her eyes but that broke the tension in the room, even Daryl smiled. "That I did, man. Multiple times."

"Okay, I so do not need to hear that," laughed Michonne. "Let's go have some breakfast and then it's time to fly home. I think we caused enough trouble in Vegas to last a lifetime."

"You can say that again," muttered Daryl. On their way out, he caught look at himself in the mirror and shook his head. "I'll meet you guys there in like ten, my shirt's a mess and I need a comb."

"You're always a mess," Michonne told him with a smile. "Here take this and fix that mop of hair. Maybe consider a haircut when we get back?'

Daryl took the comb that Michonne pulled out of her purse that she kept for Rick and fixed his hair the best he could. "But then you won't have anything to nag me about."

"There's plenty more that I've been holding back on, so don't let that stop you." Michonne linked her arms with both men. God she loved them both so much. It was time for her to have a talk with Gabby when they got back. Daryl was the best thing that ever happened to her whether she realized that or not. She just needed to give him a chance. What fun was life without taking chances? She took a chance on Rick and that ended up being the best thing she ever did. Now it was Gabby's turn.


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

The flight home to Georgia was much different than the one to Las Vegas. It was smooth and completely non-eventful. It also made a difference that Daryl was sitting with Michonne and Rick. He had someone to talk to even though he didn't feel like talking. He did not know if it was for his sake or hers but Michonne held onto his hand and Rick's both when they took off and landed.

Daryl had a long time to think about what had happened in Vegas and what lay ahead for him. Rick was going to set up an appointment with the estate lawyer about his inheritance. He was still stunned that Rick's parents included him in their will and were so generous. Ten thousand dollars was more than he ever imagined ever having in the bank. He had plans to spend some, but not all. Nothing frivolous, well maybe the flat screen TV he wanted was, but anything else would be a necessity.

Gabrielle. What the hell was he going to do with her? Common sense told him that getting the divorce was the best option. They had so many things going against them. She lived in Atlanta and he was at least forty-five minutes outside of it in Parkvale. She may have started out poor like he grew up, but now was a difference story. She ran with a faster, higher class group of people and he was well one step beyond white trash. Nothing about them should work and nothing did, except the sex.

That was the first time Daryl smiled in the last few hours. Yeah, the sex with the princess was off the charts good. He knew it and so did she. Was that enough of a start for them? Daryl wasn't sure, but then what did he know about relationships. " _Not much that's fer sure_ ," he thought to himself.

For now Daryl decided to wait and see what happened with Gabrielle. The ball or in their case the divorce was in her court now. He couldn't afford a lawyer so it was up to her to dissolve the marriage if that's what she wanted.

Once back on solid ground, the newlyweds and Daryl headed back home. After the lights and excitement of Las Vegas, Parkvale seemed very tame and quiet. For the first time, Daryl walked into his apartment and it felt lonely. What would it be like to share a place with someone like Gabrielle?

The dump he lived in wasn't bad by his standards, but he knew someone like Gabrielle would never like it. He bet her place in Atlanta ten times nicer than his, maybe even twenty times. He sat down on his used sofa and figured it was hopeless. Well at least, he could claim that he had a really hot wife for just a little while.

Much to Daryl's surprise, he had a few changes in his life over the next few weeks. He and Rick met with the lawyer and he was on track to get the money by first of the month. He also had been keeping an eye out for another job. He liked where he worked and the guys there, but he felt underpaid. One day an ad caught his eye and he saw that the local car dealership was looking for an experienced mechanic.

He went over and filled out an application and a week later he gave his notice at the garage. He was guaranteed forty hours a week, occasional overtime if he wanted and it also paid three dollars an hour more. It was a no brainer to switch jobs.

The strange thing was that he had still not heard a word from Gabrielle or her lawyer and it had been weeks. He wanted to call her, but he was afraid to. He was afraid that he would have no idea what to say to her and afraid that she still wanted the divorce. He wasn't sure what he wanted and that's why he felt the need to discuss it with her. So Daryl took the easy way out and did nothing.

Days turned to more weeks and there still was no word from Atlanta. Daryl received the check from the Grimes' estate and for once he felt like a rich man. He bought the flat screen TV he wanted and a new bed. He had a used twin bed that someone was getting rid of and now he was able to buy his first brand new queen size bed. At least now if he ever did have a girlfriend, as the idea no longer sounded strange to him, he had a bed that two people could fit in.

The last thing he did was finally get a new motorcycle. It wasn't brand new, but it was so much better than the one he had. He put a couple thousand down and with Rick's help he financed the rest. It was the first time he ever had a loan and while he was nervous about it, the extra money he now made basically went to the monthly payment on the bike.

It was an awesome bike too. He had always admired the Triumphs and loved the sleek look of the Tiger and that was the bike of his dreams. It was solid black with just a little bit of chrome that made the bike look so damn badass.

After all of his purchases, he still had a little over five thousand still left that stayed in the bank. He had the cushion that he always wanted to have in case anything ever happened with his job.

Daryl was in the best place in his life that he had ever been. He had money in the bank, a decent ride and a good job. It gave him the confidence he needed to finally call Gabrielle. He had still not heard a word from her and it was almost two months after Las Vegas.

First he had to get her phone number from Michonne and after a he answered about a dozen questions, Michonne finally gave him Gabrielle's cell number. He didn't call it right away. He picked up his phone a time or two or ten to call, but just couldn't do it.

It was one Friday night and Daryl had a good day at work. He liked the guys he worked with and his boss complimented him on finding the problem in a car that no one else could figure out. He was in a decent mood for a change, so Daryl picked up a couple of six packs on the way home. He tried Rick, but he was working the evening shift that day, so he turned on his big screen TV and knocked back a few. Then a few more. Just before starting into the second six pack, he finally found courage to call Gabrielle.

The first time it went to voice mail. The second time it went to voice mail. The third time he finally left a message that simply said, "Call me wife."

An hour later, his phone rang. He looked down at the caller ID and saw it was her. Gabrielle…Princess…his wife. His temporary wife.

Even though he was slightly drunk, it still took a deep breath before he pressed the button to answer the call. "Hey Princess."

"Hello Daryl. What's the problem? Is Michonne okay?" she asked. Gabrielle had seen his number come up each time he called, but she refused to answer. He was too tempting. The more she stayed away from him, the more she thought about their night together. It couldn't happen again and she didn't trust herself to be able to say no.

After he left the short voice mail that made her smile, she wondered if there was a problem. It gave her an excuse to call him back. As she held the phone in her hands, she wondered why she had never done anything about the divorce. Sure she was busy at work, but she should have made time to get the process started and she hadn't. She just wasn't ready to break that tie with him yet.

"She's fine, so is Rick. What you up to?" he asked trying to not sound drunk.

"Just a lot of work which ends up to a lot of billable hours," she told him.

"What's that?"

Gabrielle explained how it worked in the marketing field and the time they spent working on specific projects, they charged for, but also was counted towards her job performance. "Don't garages bill customers for labor on the amount of time involved to fix the problem?"

"Yeah, we do. I get it," he said. The line was quiet for a moment before he said, "I got a new job."

Gabrielle settled into the corner of her sofa. She had comfortable yoga pants on along with a tank top. She should be out with friends or people from work, but since she got back from Las Vegas that urge to go out vanished. She was enjoying a quiet night home and somehow finally talking to Daryl felt right.

"Tell me about it?" she asked softly.

And he did. They talked for over an hour and not once did either of them bring up the subject of their marriage. Finally, Gabrielle said, "Well I better go." She didn't want to, but she knew she had to.

"Can I call you again?" Daryl didn't know where he got the courage to ask her that, but it just came out.

Gabrielle surprised herself by saying, "I'd like that." Forcing herself to hang up she finally said, "Goodnight Daryl."

"Night Princess," he told her before hanging up. That had gone so much better than he anticipated. They got along, they talked and she was going to let him call her again. And the best part of all…she never mentioned the divorce. It was a pretty damn good way to end his day.

Gabrielle hugged her knees still clutching her phone. She was playing with fire and she knew it. She closed her eyes and let out a big sigh. What was it about him that she found so irresistible, that even after the few months had gone by she still felt the pull to him. That raspy, deep voice of his gave her butterflies every time he spoke. She realized he never pretended to be anything but what he was and she found that refreshing. Too many of the men she met in Atlanta thought too highly of themselves and their arrogance bothered her now. It reminded her to much of how she used to be. These last few months she had made some changes and all she hoped were for the better.

It was easier to be nicer to people than be a bitch. It made her happier and that showed in her work, as where she was really good before, now her ideas excelled. She was becoming the person she should have always been.

She put her phone in the charger before heading to bed. Gabrielle was actually looking forward to Daryl's next call. For the first time in weeks, she was really happy.


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

Daryl could not believe he was counting down the days until he could call Gabrielle again. He felt like a fucking teenager. Should her call her on a Friday again, but what if she went out? What about Wednesday or Thursday? Is that too soon?

"I am fuckin' pitiful," he said aloud. Good thing he was home or people would be looking at him weird. He decided he would try her on Friday again, early evening and just hope that she was around.

He opened the refrigerator to make something to eat, but realized there really wasn't anything worthwhile in there. Daryl grabbed his helmet and took off on his bike off to grab some take out. He'd do some food shopping another day.

The bike was flying down the road on his way to a place where he could get some fried chicken, when all of a sudden he heard sirens coming up behind him. Daryl looked into his mirror and saw a police car was pulling him over. "Fuck. I wasn't going that much over the speed limit," he growled as he pulled the bike over.

Daryl got off the bike and removed his helmet before turning to greet the cop. He kept his hands in plain sight. Over the years he had learned a thing or two about dealing with police. He thought those stupid days where behind him.

The door opened on the police car and the deputy stepped out. He walked over to Daryl in full police mode complete with sunglasses and his hand near his gun. He looked formidable and serious. "License and registration please, sir."

"Knock it off Grimes," Daryl laughed.

Rick kept up the act. "You were going 50 in a 35 miles per hour zone, sir. Did you realize you were speeding? That's an automatic $100 ticket. I take cash."

"Fuck you Grimes! The most you're getting out of me is a beer. Take it or leave it."

A smile came across his face. "I'll take a rain check. Can't drink on duty. Where ya headed?"

Daryl had laid low with his friends these past few months. He and Rick had gotten together a time for two, but he was letting the newlyweds have time to themselves, plus he needed that for himself too. Gabrielle had him so mixed up, that he wasn't feeling very sociable, and since he wasn't the most social guy to begin with, his going out became non-existent.

"Going to pick up something to eat, what about you, besides pulling over innocent drivers?"

"About to go on dinner break. And you were doing 50 in a 35. Buy me dinner and we'll call it even," Rick told him with a grin.

"Ain't that bribery or sumthin'?" Daryl laughed. "Sure, man, where do you wanna go?"

They both decided on the Chicken Hut where Daryl was already headed, but they would grab a table instead of take out. Rick called in he was on Code 7 and they both took off to get dinner.

They spread out two identical meals on the table – three pieces of friend chicken, mashed potatoes, a biscuit and a large Coke. They did very little talking as they downed their dinner, both men were really hungry.

Rick asked a few innocent questions of Daryl. How's the new job going? Was the new motorcycle worth the money? Michonne wanted him to come to dinner one night next week as Rick was back on days, so Daryl told him any day was fine.

"Have you heard from Gabrielle?" Rick finally asked.

"How long you been waiting to ask that?"

"About three weeks. Michonne is nagging me to call you, but I told her it's none of our business," he said with a smirk.

"If it ain't your business, why'd ya ask?"

"Cause I'm more afraid of my wife than I am you," Rick laughed.

"You got that right!" Daryl said laughing too. Daryl realized how much he had missed his friend.

"I ain't sure what's going on to tell you the truth. I never heard from her or any lawyer and I was sure she'd have me signing papers as soon as possible. After a full integration, Michonne finally gave me her phone number. You should get you wife to questions suspects, she's brutal."

"Tell me about it!" Rick responded.

"Anyway, it took a few days to work up the courage to call her. It's fucked up, Rick. I have no idea if I want a divorce, but I barely know her. It's like I wanna give it a try or sumthin' but we live in two different damn worlds. Friday night I had a six pack under my belt so I gave her a call. Third time I finally left a message. Hour later she called me back." Daryl stopped talking to finish his soda.

"And?"

"You're a nosy son-of-a-bitch, ain't ya?" Daryl was having fun making Rick wait. He opened the plastic lid on the cup and started chomping on the ice inside. Rick gaze him a glare that probably had most of his suspects shitting in their pants, but it didn't faze Daryl. "We talked for an hour on the phone and she never brought up the divorce. How fucked up is that?"

Rick thought a moment. His friend was certainly in a weird place. Michonne was hoping they would work this out as she was confident that they belonged together, but Rick wasn't convinced. Gabrielle had to change her ways before she hurt Daryl again.

"You gonna talk to her again?"

A big smile came across Daryl's face. He just couldn't help it. "Yep, callin' her again on Friday."

Rick just shook his head. His friend had it bad. He had only seen Daryl like this about a woman once before. In high school Daryl got excited that the girl he had asked out to a dance had actually said yes. That was Sherri Ann Parker and Daryl was crazy about her. At the dance he found out that she agreed to go with him on a dare to her friends. Take the white trash redneck to the big dance and then dump him in front of everyone kind of dare. It was nothing but a joke to her. Daryl stormed out of the gymnasium and wouldn't talk to anyone for days. That was the last time Rick saw him worked up about a girl, until Gabrielle.

"Just be careful, man. Okay?"

Daryl glanced down at the remnants of his dinner before looking back at his best friend. "Man, I have no idea what I'm doing and she don't either. At least I don't think so."

Rick's radio came to life and he answered that he was available. "Gotta go. Thanks for dinner," Rick said cleaning up his meal.

"I'll remember all it takes to bribe cop is a chicken dinner. Go, I got this." Rick thanked Daryl and took off with lights and sirens. Daryl took a longer route home, enjoying the peaceful ride on his motorcycle. God, he loved this bike. He had yet to talk to his brother who still knew nothing about his current life. As much it would be nice to share it with him, it would only end badly. Merle would want to borrow money, move in, take the bike out or all of them combined. That was a major disaster waiting to happen.

Daryl parked the bike in his spot and headed inside to his apartment. He grabbed a beer out of the fridge and saw the small calendar he had taped to the door. It was Tuesday. He had to wait three more days to talk to her. It was going to seem endless.

But he made it.

Daryl had picked up a pizza on his way home on Friday and forced down two slices. Normally, he could eat almost the whole thing, but his nerves were starting to kick in. He waited until it was a little after seven thirty and he dialed.

Gabrielle made it home by six thirty tonight. A couple of the girls from work asked her to join them at happy hour at a bar they tended to frequent after work, but she declined. Daryl hadn't called her all week, so she was thinking that since last week he called on a Friday, he would do the same tonight. She hoped he would. She waited all week to hear from him again.

All she could do was pick at the salad she had made, but she wasn't very hungry. Maybe when the butterflies in her stomach calmed down, she could eat. Suddenly her cell phone rang. Gabrielle ran to the counter where she had left it and saw it was Daryl. Finally!

She answered the call on her way to the sofa. Her favorite corner was waiting for her. "Hi," she said softly.

" _God, she sounded so sexy just saying hi_ ," Daryl thought. "Hey, how you doing?"

Once again they talked about their week, their jobs and Daryl finally told her about his new motorcycle. He explained about the inheritance he had received from Rick's parents and that lead into all sorts of questions and explanations. Daryl, who always hated talking on the phone, was the one who did the majority of talking tonight. He told Gabrielle how he came to live with Rick's family. He was completely honest about this childhood. He didn't have anything to hide. If he stood any chance with her, she needed to know what it was like being Daryl Dixon. The only thing he didn't tell her was about the scars on his back. He didn't want her pity.

Gabrielle asked about his brother and why didn't they get along anymore. She was soaking up all of this information about him like a sponge. By the time Daryl had told her pretty much his entire life, it was going on ten o'clock. They had been on the phone for hours. He had never talked so much in his life or felt at ease talking about growing up in the hellhole he did as he did with Gabrielle.

They both knew it was time to call it a night and still neither of them had brought up the subject of their marriage. "Well, I guess we should say goodnight," Gabrielle reluctantly told him.

"Princess, I am all talked out. I think I talked more tonight than I did in all of last year," he laughed.

"You are a man of few words at times," she agreed. "Next week?" She said a silent prayer that he would say yes.

"Yeah, definitely next week," he said. Thank God she wanted him to call her again.

"Goodnight Mr. Dixon."

"Night, Mrs. Dixon."

They both hung up at the same time. Sooner or later they were going to have to talk about what they were going to do. Daryl hadn't meant to remind her that it was still hanging over their heads. It just sounded nice to say to her...Mrs. Dixon.

Fuck, he was such a goner.


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

The next few weeks the pattern was set. Daryl called Gabrielle every Friday evening and they talked for hours. Topics ranged from what they liked on their pizza (plain cheese for both) to what it was like growing up the way they did. The more they talked the more they found what they had in common and what they didn't.

Gabrielle liked fine dining restaurant and Daryl preferred downhome style joints. He liked outdoor activities and she preferred museums or art shows. On the outside they were opposites. Gabrielle looked like the sophisticated model and Daryl was a southern redneck. Their differences held part of the attraction to each other, but the core of it they shared many similar experiences and beliefs. They weren't as far apart as people would have thought.

"Ever been on a motorcycle?" Daryl asked one night. He was stretched out on his sofa smoking as they talked.

"Once, when I was a teen." One stupid crazy night that she regretted.

"Did ya like it?"

"Yeah…I did," she admitted.

Daryl cocked his head. She didn't answer that convincingly enough. "Don't sound like you did."

It was scary that he was getting to know her that well. "I was a stupid naïve teenager, who had good looking bad boy in his early twenties paying me attention. You know the type, dark brooding guy with tattoos and a motorcycle." Gabrielle stopped when she realized that she had just described Daryl to a 'T'."

"Like me?" he chuckled.

"Yes, like you," she laughed. "Anyway, I was sixteen and definitely didn't know any better. He kept asking me to go for a ride on his motorcycle and one night I finally said yes. A bunch of us was drinking and hanging out in this old deserted barn. I shouldn't gone, but I did. The ride was awesome…thrilling and I felt so grown up. Little did I know was that all he wanted to do was get in my pants and I let him. Gave my virginity to the guy and once we got back, I never heard from him again."

"I'll take ya out on my bike someday and I ain't trying to get in your pants either. Already been there," he laughed.

"Daryl!" Gabrielle exclaimed trying to sound outraged. He couldn't see her smiling. She had thought about that night everyday since it happened.

"What Princess? You gonna deny it? Yeah we did it…a couple times and I know you liked it, cause you kept saying ' _Oh God, Daryl'_ over and over again."

Gabrielle couldn't stop giggling. She was both embarrassed and turned on at the same time. "Stop, you're embarrassing me."

"Hey, I only speak the truth, Princess. You did say it."

"I know! A gentleman wouldn't…" she started to say.

"I ain't no gentleman," he interrupted her his voice huskier than normal. Damn, he never should have started this. He looked down at his crotch and his boner was clearly visible. Fuck.

"Thank God for that!" Gabrielle laughed and Daryl joined her. It was time to get back to a safer topic. "I'd love to take a ride on your bike one day."

"Good," was all he said.

The line was quiet for a few long seconds.

"Soon?"

"Yeah, definitely soon," he told her.

Gabrielle knew she had to say goodbye or risk doing something she may regret. She was so confused about Daryl. On one hand he didn't fit into her plans at all, but on the other hand she had never met anyone like him. He had turned out completely different than she had expected. She just didn't know what to do with their unexpected marriage, so she did nothing until she figured it out.

"Good night, Mr. Dixon," she said softly.

"Goodnight, Mrs. Dixon," he replied. This had become their standard good bye.

Daryl lay on the sofa thinking about when and how he was going to get her on his motorcycle. It had been well over threeo months since he had seen her and even though she hadn't give him any reason to think that she wasn't enjoying these weekly calls, he was afraid that if they set a date to get together she would back out.

He worked on a plan in his head and threw out ideas until he came up with one that he hoped worked, but also stood a chance of backfiring on him completely. He figured it was time to go big or go home.

The next Friday, he took off from work early. Daryl went home and showered and put in clean jeans and a black t-shirt. There was no sense in him trying to be anything but what he was. Through their weekly conversations, he knew that Gabrielle tended to get out of work between five and six, unless they were trying to meet a deadline and as far as he knew, she didn't have any.

He left Parkvale at four to try to make it to her office by five. He was going to surprise her. Between traffic and getting slightly lost, he got there at five-fifteen.

Daryl pulled up on his motorcycle not a moment too soon as he saw Gabrielle talking to two women outside of her office building. He recognized her in an instant. Her long dark hair hung halfway down her back in soft wavy curls. Her endless legs looked even longer in her high heels and skirt. He remembered when those legs had wrapped around his waist as he pounded into her that night with her begging him to go harder and faster. Yeah, he loved those legs.

He knew she didn't see him walking up to her. Where he got the courage to surprise her like this he didn't know, this was so not him. It was too late to back out now anyway. He kept his eyes glued to her as he got closer and close.

"Vicky, I don't want to go to Toppers with you guys. It's been a long week and I just want to go home, take a bath and relax," Gabrielle told her two co-workers. There was no way she was going to miss Daryl's call.

"You haven't hit happy hour with us in weeks. You're due. C'mon, I'm not taking no for an answer," Vicky replied. "Right, Ava? Ava?"

Ava leaned in like she was sharing a secret. "Ladies, there is this guy coming towards us that I don't know whether to be afraid or tell him I want to have his baby." Vicky and Gabrielle went to turn around and Ava stopped them. "No dont look...yet! Oh he's definitely headed to us. Oh God he's carrying a motorcycle helmet. I think I'm in love!"

Gabrielle knew without turning around it had to be Daryl. What was he doing here? Her heart started to beat like crazy and she did not know if it was because he dared to show up at her work or that she was ecstatic that he did. Both she and Vicky turned around that the same time and he smiled right at her.

He was looking better than in Vegas. His hair was still long and he had a little half smile on his face that made him look extremely sexy. Sunglasses covered his blue eyes, but gave him an air of mystery. Gabrielle knew he had no idea how hot that was. All that combined with the motorcycle helmet in his hand had all three women practically drooling. Gabrielle made sure that her mouth wasn't open in awe, because her two friends were.

"Hi Princess," he said lifting his sunglasses and looking directly at Gabrielle, his deep sexy voice making her toes curl in her heels. His sharp serious eyes were relaxed and held a glint of mischievousness to them. He then turned to the other two women, "Afternoon, ladies."

"You know him?" asked a surprised Ava.

"Daryl's a …friend," Gabrielle told them as Daryl casually put his arm around her shoulders.

"How did we not know about him? Gabrielle you're keeping secrets from us!" Vicky exclaimed. Little did she know how big that secret actually was. "I'm Vicky and this is Ava," Vicky purred. Gabrielle was instantly jealous. Vicky better back off.

"Nice meetin' ya ladies. I'm Daryl, so what's going on tonight?" he drawled, his southern accent a thicker than normal. Daryl knew women, even southern women loved that accent.

"We were trying to get Gabrielle to come out with to Topper's for their happy hour, but she didn't want to go. Maybe now we know why," flirted Ava.

"She's right. We already got plans tonight. Ain't that right, Princess?" he said giving her a squeeze.

Gabrielle turned and whispered in his ear, "Stop calling me that." She took a deep breath before turning back to the girls. "As you can see, I do have plans."

Vicky put a hand on Daryl's arm. "Why don't you and Gabrielle join us? We could have fun."

Gabrielle watched Daryl casually shake off Vicky's hand. Good thing because she was about to cut it off. How dare she touch him? Daryl was hers…he was her…husband. She forced a smile in her face, "No can do, we have plans. I'll see you Monday morning, girls. Have fun!"

Gabrielle pushed Daryl so that they were headed away from her friends. The faster she got away the fewer questions they could ask her in front of Daryl.

"Nice meeting you ladies. Have fun tonight," Daryl said with a wave.

"First thing Monday morning, we want details! Lots of details, Princess!" Vicky called out. Both she and Ava broke out laughing.

Gabrielle rolled her eyes as she waved goodbye as she and Daryl walked away. His arm was still around her shoulders. "Surprised?" he whispered in her ear. The brief touch of the hair from his chin across her skin sent shivers down her spine. She usually liked her men clean shaven, but the goatee on Daryl just suited him perfectly.

"Yes, big surprise."

"Good or…bad?"

Gabrielle hesitated for a moment. Daryl stopped walking and made her look at him. "Well?" he asked. If she said bad, it would kill him.

A big smile came across her face. "Good, really good."

" _Thank-fuckin'-God_ ," he thought. "Okay then… we're going for a ride." His beautiful black Triumph was parked at the curb.

"Now? On your motorcycle now?" There was no way Gabrielle could get onto a motorcycle dressed in her work clothes. Her skirt would ride up on her thighs too obscenely high.

"Now's a good a time as any, ain't it?" He knew she didn't have any plans as this was their night to talk, so he didn't see what the problem was.

"There is no way I can get on that thing, wearing what I have on and these shoes, Daryl. Okay, let me think a second," she told him. "How about you follow me to my place and I can change. Then we can go out on the bike. Okay?"

Thank God she wasn't saying no, was all Daryl could think. He took a chance and it worked. Looking at what she had on, which was something he never considered, there was no way she could straddle his bike and not have her skirt up around her waist. While he wouldn't mind that, they were in public and that just wouldn't work.

"Yeah. Okay, where ya parked?" Gabrielle pointed to the parking garage next to her office building and Daryl walked the bike over to it. He then followed her to her condominium and admired her sporty Honda Accord during the trip over. He parked in a guest parking spot and took both his helmet and the one he had bought for her that week along with him.

Gabrielle was surprised that she was so okay with him being there. It had been thirteen weeks and two days since she had last seen him. She refused to count the number of hours as this was crazy enough. For a person who was ready to divorce him the second she found about their ridiculous error in judgment, knowing the exact amount of time since she last saw him bordered on insane. How had she done such a one eighty when it came to him still surprised her, but she did.

Getting together today was a huge step in their relationship. It would either progress them further or put everything in jeopardy. Gabrielle had no idea on what she wanted to do – except to spend time with him right now.

Daryl followed Gabrielle inside the building where she lived. So far it looked like a fancy hotel with an access card that was needed to get them anywhere. All of a sudden, he was dreading seeing her place and how she lived.

They took the elevator up to the sixteenth floor and got off. Gabrielle's opened the door to her unit and Daryl knew he was fucked. Her place was expensive, classy and so not him.

If she saw his little piece of shit apartment, she would go running out the door. It was small, old and had used furniture in it, that was except the bed. He could not compete with this. No way. Maybe this was all just a bad idea after all.

Gabrielle noticed the change in Daryl immediately, but she wasn't sure why. His face had a harder look more serious look than earlier where he was smiling at her. First, she wanted to change and then she'd figure out what was going on.

"I'll just be a few minutes, okay."

"Yeah," he replied absently. He was wondering whether he should be bolt for the door when she left and just get the hell outta there or stay and watch their chance fucking crumble.

"Don't go anywhere," she told him before going down the hall to her bedroom.

Daryl whipped his head and looked at her. " _Was she fuckin' psychic? How did she know what I was thinking_?" ran through his head. "Ain't got no place else to go." He made his decision, he was staying.

"I won't be long," she told him.

Gabrielle did the fastest change of clothes she had ever done. She whipped off her good work clothes and threw them on the floor in her big walk-in closet, something she never did. She pulled on her black jeans and paired that with low cut scoop necked black shirt and her knee high black boots. Today demanded she dress the part of a babe on the back of a motorcycle. A quick touch up of her makeup and some big silver hoop earring had her back out to Daryl in less than ten minutes.

"I'm ready," she said strutting into the room.

Daryl was looking out her big windows at the city below. He turned at her voice and couldn't say a word. He was going to be the envy of every fucking guy riding a bike. Damn she was hot. "Wow," he finally was able to say.

She did a little twirl for him. "Glad you like it. Now one thing before we go…what the hell is wrong?"


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16**

Gabrielle's words completely surprised Daryl. " _How the hell did she pick up that something was wrong_?" he wondered. Daryl forced a relaxed smile on his face, "Nothin's wrong. Just anxious to get out of the city and ride."

She did not believe that for one second, but Gabrielle didn't feel she knew him well enough to call him on it. He was perfectly fine one minute and then all of a sudden, there was a change a coldness that wasn't there before. It was nothing he did or said, but a feeling she had. Well whatever was bothering him, she would take him mind off it. "Then let's go. Is one of those for me?" Gabrielle asked him pointing at the helmets he had brought in.

Daryl knew he had to make the best of it tonight. He got himself in this situation and it was not fair to Gabrielle to back out right now, plus he didn't think he could. He would take her out on his bike this one night and make memories that would have to last him. He couldn't promise more than tonight which was heartbreaking as he had naively hoped this could show her that they deserved a chance. Instead it proved to him just the opposite, how could they live a life together when he couldn't even afford her coffee maker.

"Yeah, this one's for you. Try it on," he suggested.

Like a little girl, Gabrielle giggled as she took the black helmet from Daryl. Then she walked over to the big mirror in her entrance hall to try it on. She slipped it on and her long luxurious hair spilled out the back in wild waves. She turned and gave him a big grin.

This time Daryl smiled for real. Her enthusiasm was contagious and she looked like a hot biker babe in that helmet. Hell, she was his hot biker babe.

"How do I look?" she asked him.

"Hot as hell," he answered honestly.

"Perfect, then let's go." After removing the helmet, Gabrielle grabbed some cash, a credit card and her ID from her wallet and put that in her back pocket. Her house key went in the front pocket and she hoped she wouldn't be back for hours if not longer.

With the door locked, they headed to the elevator and when the door closed behind them, Daryl did what he had been wanting to do for months. "Hang onto this," he told Gabrielle giving her his helmet so she had one in both hands. Then he cupped her face and kissed her. It was gentle at first, but by the time the doors opened the temperature in the elevator had skyrocketed.

They reluctantly pulled apart and walked out of the elevator. Daryl took his helmet back from Gabrielle. "Been waiting three months to fuckin' do that again," he told her as they headed towards his bike.

"Me too, Daryl. Me too." Gabrielle felt she was walking in air. How could she have ever denied her attraction to him? It was stronger than she had ever had with any other guy.

When they got to the motorcycle, Daryl had her put the helmet again on so he could make sure it was fitting her correctly. He gave her a quick lesson on how to ride and lean into turns and not away from. Then he got on the bike first, put on his helmet and started the engine. Gabrielle climbed on behind him. She learned where to put her feet, wrapped her arms around his waist and they were ready to go.

Daryl had then heading out of Atlanta as quickly as he could. He didn't like cities and all the traffic that came with them. Motorcycles were easily missed with so many cars moving in and out of lanes. He breathed a sigh of relief when they finally left the city behind and were back into the country. This was the riding he loved.

Since talking on the bike, was impossible, Daryl pulled over to see how Gabrielle was doing. The death grip she had on him in Atlanta had relaxed. He turned around and faced her, "How ya doing?"

"Good…now. I was a little nervous at first, but now that there's less cars around us it's great." Gabrielle was ready to piss in her pants on the beginning. She never realized how close cars would come to a motorcycle. It was like they didn't even care that they were there. Now she was enjoying it to the maximum. The wind, the freedom was incredible. She knew exactly why Daryl loved to ride and now so did she.

He saw the excitement in her eyes and knew he had converted her. "It'll be dark in a little while, so let's ride for a bit more then catch dinner?"

"Sounds perfect. Let's go!"

Daryl chuckled at her enthusiasm. He started the engine and took off. They spent the next thirty minutes flying through back country roads and enjoying the evening that was setting in. He knew of a small bar in a neighboring town that he hadn't been to in a while that had the best cheeseburgers he had outside the one in Vegas. Quite a few bikers frequented the place and damned if he didn't want to show Gabrielle off.

The sun had almost set by the time he pulled into 'The Monkey Farm.' There were about half dozen bikes parked outside along with an assortment of cars and pickup trucks. They left the helmets with the bike and started to walk in.

Gabrielle slipped her hand in his. She was nervous about walking into a place like this, but she didn't doubt that she was safe with Daryl, plus he would never take her a bar that he didn't fit in with. It felt good having his warm strong hand in hers, not to mention it established them as a couple to everyone inside.

Even though Daryl hadn't been here in a while, he still saw faces that he knew. Greetings where called out as they made their way to the bar. A muscular middle-aged guy with tattoos completely covering both arms and his neck was behind it pouring drinks.

"Well look what the ugly cat dragged in? Where ya been Dixon?"

"Out and about. Working my ass off. How ya doing, Mack?" Daryl had always like Mack. He was the owner. He was fair, poured a decent beer and didn't put up with anyone's shit, especially his brother's.

"Can't complain," he said to Daryl. Then he turned to Gabrielle. She was the best looking woman he ever had in his joint. God damn lucky Dixon. "Hey there sweet thing, what can I get you?"

"Gabrielle, this is Mack the bars ugly-ass owner. Mack, hands off her and I'll take two beers and a table," Daryl answered. "You still got little John cooking for ya?"

"Fuck yeah. No way in hell I'll ever let him leave." Mack placed the two beers on the counter and Daryl grabbed them both. "Honey nice to meet ya," Macksaid with a smile to Gabrielle. "Don't know how a beautiful young lady like you ended up with Daryl, but if you change your mind ol' Mack is right here," he said with a teasing smile.

Before Daryl could say anything, Gabrielle leaned up closer to Mack. "Thanks for the offer, but Daryl has some special talents that I doubt anyone can beat. He's one of a kind." Gabrielle smiled at Mack before she planted a hot kiss on Daryl's mouth. Then she strutted her assets to an available table leaving both men with big smiles on their faces.

"You are fuckin' lucky, man," Mack told him.

"You have no idea!" Daryl laughed and followed Gabrielle to the table.

Daryl only had two beers that night as he was driving. They both enjoyed the big juicy cheeseburgers that came out of the tiny kitchen in the back. They talked, laughed and visited with the many people who stopped by to say hello to Daryl. He wasn't normally this popular and he knew the reason why.

Gabrielle.

A couple hours had gone by and it was time to head out. Mack dropped the check at the table. "Your brother was in last week."

Daryl didn't want to talk about Merle in front of Gabrielle, but it looked like he didn't have a choice. That was one topic he hadn't gotten into too much detail with her. Maybe he could keep it at a minimum. "Haven't seen him in a long time, Daryl."

"That's what he said. He was looking for ya."

" 'ppreciate it if you don't mention that you saw me. Tryin' to keep my distance," Daryl told him.

"Good for ya, man. I know he's your bro, but he's crazy." Mack didn't like Merle in his place. He always got too drunk and picked fights all the time. He had told him not to come back again after the scene he had caused last week.

Daryl started to pull money out of his wallet. "He didn't leave you holding a tab did he?" It wouldn't be the first time Merle had slipped out without paying up.

"He did, but I kicked his ass out last time, so it's no big deal," Mack told him.

Daryl just shook his head. Just more proof that his staying away from Merle was for the best. "Whatta he owe ya? I'll take care of it."

Mack quoted an amount which was actually half of what Merle owed. Daryl shouldn't be responsible for his brother's obligations. That he wanted to cover it, showed the difference between the two men and what a standup guy Daryl was. This did not go unnoticed by Gabrielle.

Daryl had only talked briefly about his brother, but she knew he was bad news. That Daryl voluntarily covered Merle's unpaid bill spoke volumes to her. He was definitely the type of guy she wanted to be with.

"You're a good man, Daryl Dixon," she whispered in his ear before dropping a light kiss on his cheek.

He turned his head towards her and Gabrielle could see the hunger in his eyes. It was definitely time to leave.

Daryl dropped the cash on the table and grabbed for Gabrielle's hand. They waved goodbye to everyone as they headed out the door. It was night time and full darkness settling around them even made the parking lot seem intimate.

"Where we going now?" Gabrielle asked.

"Hadn't planned that far," he admitted. He was surprised she had come with him in the first place. "What do you wanna do? It's too dark to keep just riding around, so we could go to another bar or I don't know." This was why Daryl never dated much. He hated making plans for someone when he didn't know what they wanted to do.

"How far do you live from here?" Gabrielle wondered.

"Bout twenty minutes, why?" Oh no, they were so not going back to his place. It was everything that she was not as it was old, ugly and cheap. It had suited him and his needs just fine, but to bring the Princess there would be a just like handing her knife and asking her it stab him in the heart. The second she stepped foot inside, she go running from him for good. Wasn't that though what he wanted a few hours ago? God, he was so messed up.

"It would be nice to have a quiet place where we could talk and hang out. We do have a lot that we've never talked about and I kind of want to see where you live," Gabrielle said with a shy smile.

"Princess, you don't want to see my place. It's small and nothing special," he told her trying to change her mind. "Why don't we go back to your place instead? We have to eventually head back there anyway."

One minute he wanted everything from her, but would change his mind the next. He knew he was totally mixed up on what to do and spending these last few hours with her didn't help. He wanted Gabrielle in his life now more than ever and if she saw where he lived, that would end instantly.

"You sure?" Gabrielle was curious to see where he lived.

"Yep. Let's head back to your place. We can go to mine another day." Or never.

Within the hour they were rolling back up to Gabrielle's building. She hated that the ride was coming to an end. She loved being behind him on the motorcycle. The closeness that they shared with her hanging onto him was wonderful. She was hoping that would continue. It was long past time that they discussed their future. She wanted them to have a future.

Daryl parked the bike and they strolled hand in hand back to her place. Daryl even kissed her again in the elevator. They left the helmets in the hall and Gabrielle offered him a drink. "I have beer, wine, liquor, soda, bottle water…what would you like?"

"I'll take a beer," he told her. Something to steady his nerves.

Gabrielle poured a glass of wine for herself and joined Daryl in the living room. The fact that it was just the two of them alone together for the first time since Las Vegas didn't get past either one of them. The room was quiet for a minute, before Gabrielle blurted out, "So what are we doing, Daryl?"

Instead of answering her, he pulled Gabrielle to him and smashed his lips to hers. Walking into her condo reminded him that he was giving himself one more night with her.

One more night of memories before it was over. One more night he could be happy.

* * *

 **A/N - Just want to thanks to everyone that is reading _Taking a Chance_. I love hearing from everyone. Special thanks to jeanf, RBGzMom, Enjoi88 and Miss October 13 for your reviews! And all of you that post as 'guest' too! Season 7 starts tonight! **


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17**

Daryl had been waiting to get Gabrielle in his arms again for months. He wasn't going to waste any more time talking, it was time for kissing and more... much, much more. Kissing her also meant he would not have to answer her question. He wanted to put that off for as long as he could. Maybe forever.

He felt her body simply melt into his, so he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her down so that they were lying together on the sofa. Their lips sought out each other with a hunger that came from them being apart for so long. He kissed her for the longest time, just loving her taste, her soft lips and her eagerness to be with him. He had never enjoyed kissing as much as he did with Gabrielle. In the past kissing was where it started and that was always to lead to him getting laid. With her it was so different, so sensuous and he loved it.

Daryl finally flipped them around so he was on top. He had more control this way. Their lips and tongues still playing together as the heat continued to rise between them. Daryl broke their kiss to trail his lips down her neck. He pushed the neck of her shirt over her shoulder to nibble on her bare skin. Then he kissed his way over to her collar bone, his hand roving to finally find her breast and rubbing her firm nipple beneath the fabric. Gabrielle could do nothing but moan in pleasure underneath him.

She pressed her hips up into Daryl's, his hard erection pressing against her. Their clothes were the only thing separating them. Daryl's hand stroked her nipples until they ached and Gabrielle's breathing deepened. He touched her like he read her mind – hard then soft, quick then slow. Everything she wanted. Everything she needed.

Suddenly he was gone, his weight off her left like a loss and Gabrielle opened her eyes to beg him to come back. Her desperate blue eyes found his and they locked onto each other. He held out his hand for her to take and get up. Daryl no longer wanted to continue where they were. He wanted the comfort of the bed…her bed.

"Bedroom," was all he said and Gabrielle instantly knew what he wanted. She took his hand and lead him through the living room, past the kitchen and dining room and finally down the hall where the bedrooms where. It had been a long time since she had a man in hers.

Daryl only had time to notice that the room was as large as his living room and kitchen combined, plus she had a big king size bed. That's all that mattered right then was the bed. The sooner he could get her on it, the sooner he could get his hands on her.

Gabrielle was the one to crush her lips against his this time, their mouths back together tasting and tormenting the other. Her fingers frantically grabbed the hem of his t-shirt and pulled it up over his head. Their lips separating only for the time it took to get rid of his shirt. Gabrielle splayed her hands on his chest, loving the touch of his warm skin.

Daryl proceeded to remove Gabrielle's shirt as fast as he could, with her bra following it forgotten on the floor. He groaned when he felt her bare breasts up against his chest. He couldn't resist cupping them both, before his hands dropped to his pants.

They parted only long enough for each of them to get rid of boots, pants and anything else that was in the way of them being naked. Quickly they found each other on the bed, bodies pressed together desperate for that touch of the other. Bare skin against bare skin. Gabrielle was on her back and Daryl lay half on top of her, neither having said a word since Daryl told her where he wanted to go.

"I want you so bad, Princess," Daryl groaned as his erection pressed into her inner thigh. Close…so damn close.

"Yes, oh God yes," Gabrielle sighed. No man had ever made her feel the way he did and she had been without him too long.

Daryl's mouth found hers again and flicking his tongue had Gabrielle instantly opening for him. His fingers wove through her thick black hair holding her close. The whole world was reduced to just the two of them and nothing more. Their hands on each other…their bodies on fire…their existence reduced to just one purpose and that was to find the way to come together as one.

His hand on her breast brought soft whimpers coming from Gabrielle that only increased when he mouth replaced his hand. He was driving her wild as he played with her nipple, first gently then harder and harder. He had learned in Vegas that Gabrielle liked sex a little on the rough side and that was perfect for him. He wasn't a gentle type of guy.

With his mouth occupied, his free hand traveled down her body until he was tracing along her inner thighs. Gabrielle instinctively spread her legs further apart for him. He knew what she wanted, but he wasn't ready to give it to her yet.

Gabrielle was in heaven. Daryl's hands knew exactly what her body craved. She had long-term lovers that never were this attuned to her needs and Daryl already was. She knew already, she would never get enough of him…she could never let him go.

The sensations that rolled through her were indescribable. It was a combination of intense need, crazy off the charts lust and something she couldn't quite place… at least not yet.

Daryl teased and taunted her body by his fingers coming close to her sex, but never stopping or touching.

"Please," she sighed in frustration, bringing a smile to Daryl's eyes.

"Please what?'

He was driving her crazy. "Touch me, oh God please touch me."

"Say it again," he demanded. His calm, cool and ever so high class Princess was begging for his touch. Daryl could get used to having her at his mercy. This was a whole new sexual experience for him, a he never worried about what girl wanted. Pleasing Gabrielle and having her beg for his fingers to touch her was such a turn on he wondered why he hadn't done this sooner. Then again it could just be Gabrielle. He did understand one thing - they had incredible chemistry together.

"Touch me," she whimpered.

It was a combination of Daryl's mouth clamping down on her breast harder that he had been and his fingers immediately entering her wetness that had Gabrielle arching off the bed. He had two fingers inside of her that were moving in and out of her, while he tugged at her nipple with his teeth. Then his thumb found her sensitive clit.

He caressed it softly at first, but quickly picking up speed as Gabrielle's breathing intensified with the moans. "You like that Princess, dontcha?"

"Yes…don't…stop," she managed to get out. Gabrielle could feel her climax building until she was just at the edge. Daryl could feel it too. He could also feel his rock hard dick that was begging to be inside of her.

Daryl's fingers were assaulting her in her soaking wet pussy, while his mouth controlled her breast. Gabrielle knew she was about to come and come strongly. She loved this aggressive style of sex and always had. When he bit down on her again and started rubbing her faster, she just lost it. Waves and waves of a never-ending orgasm flowed through every nerve ending she had.

When she was almost done bucking from the pleasure his hand had brought her, Daryl positioned his body over hers and plunged into her in one fluid stroke. Daryl had wanted this for months, to be back inside Gabrielle. No other woman had ever had him this hard or felt this good.

After watching her come, Daryl knew he probably didn't have it in him to last long, but he was going to try. His face was next to hers as he slowly moved himself in and out of her as their bodies became one. Gabrielle wrapped her legs around his waist to try to pull him closer.

She had barely finished her first orgasm when he entered her throwing her body back into the electric overload only he could give her. The climb to her second climax in just minutes was faster and coming on stronger than the first.

"Oh God," she whimpered again. Cohesive sentences weren't possible. "Faster…harder…please!"

Daryl moved her legs slightly higher for better access and instantly his thrusting increased until he could feel his own orgasm about to burst. "With me Princess… come with me," he barely got out before he was spilling inside of her. Gabrielle came at the same time too. It had been so long since he had her, that he came stronger than ever, finally collapsing exhausted on top of her.

When he got his strength back, he rolled off her cradling her in his strong arms. Daryl had never had sex anything like he did with Gabrielle. It was so different, so all consuming. He could not wait until they did it again.

Gabrielle turned her head and looked up into his eyes, now that she was finally able to breathe again. God she was so damn happy. She reached a hand up, brushed his hair out of his eyes and pulled him down for a kiss.

"I don't know what it is, but sex with you is incredible," she told him. "It's like you know exactly what I need and when. God, I can't wait until we do it again!"

Daryl turned his head slightly away from Gabrielle. He never took compliments well and hell he was sort of figuring this out as he went along. He felt his cheeks start to blush, so he closed his eyes to try to hide his embarrassment.

"Daryl, are you blushing?" Gabrielle sat up so she could see him better. Yes, he was blushing. " _God, that is so adorable_ ," she thought.

"No one's ever told you that before?"

Damn, she wasn't going to let it go. "I ain't ever had sex like that before," he admitted. "That's didn't quite come out right. I've gotten laid and fucked around, but it was different. Never gave a shit, 'bout her. I just wanted to get off, but with you it's different. It made me fuckin' hard has hell to watch you get off. I'm just kinda figuring out what works." God that was the most embarrassing thing he just admitted to her.

Gabrielle looked at him stunned. "If this is you 'figuring it out' I am in so much trouble when you do. Daryl, I've never come this hard and fast before." It was Gabrielle's turn to get embarrassed. When she flushed red, it brought a little smile to Daryl's lips.

"I'm not a slut by any means, but I'm thirty-three and been around the block or a time or two. This is the best sex I've ever had and we're still getting to know each other. I can't imagine what it's going to be like when we do. Holy shit!" she laughed.

Daryl learned two important things right then, her age, just a four years younger than he was and that she wanted more. All he could think about was this weekend. He'd get through these couple of days and figure it out from there.

He pulled her down on top of him. "Then we better get movin' on this getting to know each other shit. Wanna try on top this time?" he growled in that rough voice that she loved.

Gabrielle's answer was to push her hips down over his, so he just slid right inside of her. They spent the entire weekend getting to know each other very well rolling from one position to the next, hungry for so much more.


	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter 18**

Daryl had his arms wrapped around Gabrielle as they stood by her front door. They had literally spent the entire weekend in bed, emerging only to eat. It was the best weekend of his life and she was the greatest thing that ever happened to him.

Gabrielle's head was pressed into his chest with her arms holding onto him, not letting him go. He however had to go. He had work in the morning and he knew he needed sleep. They had spent a lot of time in bed, but there had been very little sleeping accomplished.

His eyes once again took in the luxuriousness of how she lived. It was a lifestyle he never would be able to afford. That she had to make so much more than he did bother him…big time. From the first second he met her everything about her screamed upscale and high class. Everything that he was not. He had almost forgotten that, but once he was thinking with the right head again, reality slammed back into him. There was no fucking way this would work.

"Hey I gotta go," he said to her softly. "Wanna get home before dark, Princess."

"But I don't want you to go," she whined. Gabrielle knew she was sounding like a petulant child, but she never knew a man like him. That she wanted him around non-stop was unique for her. Usually she always needed her space, but not with Daryl. She couldn't get enough of him.

"I know," he chuckled, "But I gotta. I don't want to, but I got work in the mornin' and so do you."

Daryl took her face in his rough work hands and kissed her deeply. He was the one who pulled away first. The kiss was going to have to last him a long time. He had to go. He'd lose more than his job if he stayed.

"Call me… text me during the week?" Gabrielle asked.

"Definitely," he said know he was lying to her. After one last deep passionate kiss and he was out the door. Daryl put his sunglasses on immediately, needing to hide himself from the world around him. The air was still thick with all that they couldn't and didn't talk about.

Their fears.

The distance.

Their love.

Something had shifted. He knew he'd found someone very rare and very lonely like he was. It would be difficult to let her go, like she belonged to him already. That they were married didn't mean anything, that was just a piece of paper. She belonged in his heart, where no woman had ever gone before. He found her, just in time to let her go.

He knew Gabrielle watched him walk down the hall and he gave her a wave from the elevator. The doors closed on him…and on them.

The whole ride home he was in turmoil. Was this the right thing to do? He never should have tracked her down and spent this weekend with her. It had been a huge mistake. He played with fire and knew the resulting burn was going to be more painful than he could ever imagine.

It already was.

He had fallen for her harder than he thought possible. He had loved every single minute he had spent with Gabrielle. They laughed, they talked and they shared their bodies as only people deeply connected could.

A small smile crept on his face. He knew every inch of her body now and she was something he would never forget. She had one hell of a body to start with and she responded to him like they were made for each other. His smile quickly faded when he knew he was going to hurt her too. In the long run, this was the best option. The more time they would spend together the harder it would be when reality hit. The reality that there was no way a woman like her would settle for a loser like him.

Sure they got along now, but that wasn't always the case. Also, once the novelty of a guy like him wore off, he'd be yesterday's news. Cutting it off now, would be the best thing for him to do. If that was true, why wasn't it hurting so badly then?

It would be too easy to just avoid her from now on, but there was a big complication in the way. They had that little problem left over from Vegas to deal with. They were still legally married.

By the time Daryl got home, he had made up his mind. Thinking on his bike was what he did best. This weekend was awesome, but he wasn't going to repeat it. They were

done.

* * *

Gabrielle was floating on air when she walked into work on Monday. It had felt lonely waking up without Daryl that morning. They had spent two incredible days together and she couldn't wait for the weekend to come so they could do it again. She had never felt this excited about a guy before.

She headed to her office and had barely made it inside, before Vicky and Ava ran in and closed the door behind them.

"Details! Now!" Vicky laughed.

"We are dying to hear about Daryl! Where did you meet him? Why didn't you tell us? And does he have a brother?" Ava asked.

"Can I at least get a cup of coffee first?" Gabrielle smiled. She wasn't sure how much she wanted to share yet. This was all so new and wonderful.

"No!" the girls said in unison.

"Daryl is a friend of my friend Michonne. I met him when I went to Las Vegas for her wedding."

"But that was months ago! You've been holding out on us that long?" whined Vicky.

"Yes and no. We got drunk the night of the wedding and ending having a one night stand. I never saw him after that even though he lives in Georgia. Then a couple weeks ago he called me out of the blue and we've been talking ever since," she told them. "Then he just showed up."

"I bet you didn't do a lot of talking this weekend?" Ava teased.

Gabrielle blushed. "No we didn't."

"You're not leaving it at that. We want details," Ava demanded. They always shared their adventures with men.

There was no way she wanted to trivialize her time with Daryl by spilling the details of their time together. It was too personal...too special. "All I'm going to say is that he didn't leave until last night. You're not getting any more than that."

Ava looked at Vicky and they both got big smiles on their faces. "You are so in love with him!" Vicky exclaimed. "You always dish and we can see it in your face. Oh Gabrielle, are you sure?"

Gabrielle didn't answer her for a moment. Did she love Daryl? It was so fast, so new. She knew she felt more for him than any other guy she had ever known. " _Oh my God_ ," she thought. She had fallen in love and didn't even realize it.

Gabrielle's wide eyes met theirs, "I think I am. He's incredible."

The girls talked for a little bit longer, and then they had to get back to work. Gabrielle had a smile on her face the entire day. She was in love.

That afternoon she couldn't resist sending him a text. All she said was _Miss you_.

Daryl heard the text come in on his phone. He rarely received them, so he wondered what was up. He stopped working under the hood of a Mustang that he was changing the spark plugs on and popped open his phone. He still used the old fashion flip style phones, never finding the need for the fancy phones they had out these days.

Fuck, it was from Gabrielle. He had a sleepless night because she wouldn't get out of his head. He had come in exhausted and grumpy. Daryl had hoped that she would have come to the same conclusion he did and he wouldn't hear from her again, unless it was about the divorce. From what she sent, that wasn't happening. He put the phone back into his pocket without responding and went back to work.

By Thursday, Gabrielle didn't know whether or not to be upset or worried. Daryl hadn't answered any of her texts even though he had said he would. If he didn't show up again after work tomorrow, then she knew he would call. She was hoping to go to his place this weekend, instead of hers.

Friday came and went, without Gabrielle hearing from him. She didn't sleep at all that night wondering had had gone wrong. Was it something she said or did? She knew he had as good a time together as she did, so was that all it was to him? Was he in it for just the great sex?

With tears threatening to fall, she finally called him Saturday afternoon and left a message. It definitely was his phone number when his voice mail came on. Then she called again that night. This time she left a message hoping he was okay and asking what was going on.

She never heard back and spent the weekend crying. How could she have been so wrong about him?

Daryl spent his weekend drinking himself into a stupor. He stayed drunk most of Saturday and Sunday. He was taking the cowardly way out and ignoring all of her messages that he listened to over and over again. He could hear the hurt in her voice and it killed him, but he still couldn't bring himself to call her back.

He was a bear at work all week, staying to himself and snapping at everyone. At night he'd go home and listen to her voice again and fall asleep drunk. He was living up to his last name. Dixon's were nothing but losers.

Monday morning Gabrielle did her best to try conceal her red swollen eyes with makeup, but Ava and Vicky saw through it right away.

"You look like shit. Oh God, what did he do?" Ava asked her.

Gabrielle broke out crying. Vicky went over to her and pulled her into a hug. "What did he do, Gab? "

"Nothing," she sobbed. "He never returned my texts or voice mails. I never saw this coming. I don't know…what I did wrong."

Ava wrapped her arms around her two friends. "Men are just dicks."

The girls pulled apart after a minute. "Oh God, I have a meeting with the Dave and Jonathon about the new campaign for the Falcon's in ten minutes. I can't go looking like this."

"Sit down," instructed Ava. "Vicky, go get the big red bag out of my desk drawer with the makeup."

Vicky ran off to do as instructed and Ava quietly spoke to Gabrielle. "I'm going to fix you up, so they won't know you've been crying. Then after work if you want we can get drunk or eat ice cream, which ever you want and call him every nasty name in the book. I know some really good ones, okay?"

Gabrielle half smiled and shook her head yes, then let Ava work her magic. You could barely tell that she had been sobbing minutes earlier between the eye drops that got rid of her red eyes and fabulous make-up job Ava had done. Gabrielle went to her meeting, thankful that she had such good friends.

* * *

A/N - a tremendous amount of people reading this story and especially last chapter, but no one is reviewing/commenting. How am I doing? Do you like it?


	19. Chapter 19

**Chapter 19**

Michonne pulled into the parking lot at Daryl's apartment building. She slammed the jeep into park, taking her frustration out on her vehicle. She was furious at Daryl.

Last night she had felt the urge to call Gabrielle and see how she was doing. When she finally got around to asking her what had she and Daryl decided to do about the marriage, Michonne was completely shocked when Gabrielle started crying uncontrollably.

It took her almost an hour, but she finally got the whole story out of her best friend. Now she was arriving to kill Daryl or at least seriously maim him. It didn't matter to her that he was bigger than she was or her was her husband's best friend. She and Daryl were going to have it out right then and there.

The incessant pounding on his front door woke him up. Daryl realized he had passed out on his sofa…again. He put his hand over his eyes and prayed they went away. No one ever came to visit him anyway so they probably had the wrong apartment. God, his head was killing him.

Michonne pounded harder on the door when Daryl didn't answer it. She knew he was home as his bike was parked downstairs. "Daryl, open this damn door now!" she yelled.

What the fuck was Michonne doing at his door waking him up at? Daryl looked at his watch - twelve thirty-eight. " _Damn it was the afternoon already_ ," he realized. Slowly he got up off the sofa and felt his head start to pound even more. He wasn't sure if it was his head or the door that was making so much noise. He had to stop getting so drunk.

He unlocked the door and before he barely had it open Michonne pushed past him. "Come on in, Michonne," he said sarcastically.

"What the fuck is wrong with you?" she demanded.

Daryl had never seen her this mad at him before and he had no idea why. She also never used the word fuck, so he knew something was up. "I have no fuckin' idea what you are talking about. Let's sit down, my head is killing me."

It didn't go unnoticed the dozens of empty beer bottles scattered around the apartment. The overflowing ashtrays and the fast food containers left out. Daryl never lived like this. His place was always neat and clean.

Michonne knew a hangover when she saw one. Daryl could throw them back as well as anyone else, but she had never seen his place like this. She was going to get to the bottom of this no matter what.

"Fine," she said and sat herself down on the sofa.

She used the word that all men hated 'Fine' and that was never good. Daryl grabbed a glass of water from the kitchen before sitting down next to her. "What did I do?" His head was still fuzzy from all the beer he had drank last night or he may have figured out why she was here.

"I spoke to Gabby last night. To say that she is upset, is an understatement. I was surprised when she told me you guys had been talking. I know you asked for her phone number, but I thought you were checking up in the divorce, not trying to get into her pants again." Michonne stopped there to see what his reaction was going to be. Daryl had always kept his sex life private. She honestly didn't even know if he had one as she had never seen him with a girl in the whole time she knew him. Rick had told her that Daryl didn't do relationships, just occasional one night stands. He was not going to treat Gabby that way.

Michonne had not forgotten the mess between them in Las Vegas. Gabrielle was completely to blame for that, but she didn't think Daryl was the type to play the pay back game, especially after all this time.

Gabby had explained everything to Michonne in between her tears. That from the very start she was attracted to Daryl and her way of dealing with it was to try to turn him away by being a bitch. But then they had to get drunk and end up married and that threw her into a tail spin of not knowing how to handle it. Gabby was mad at herself for marrying a complete stranger, but at the same time she was desperately attracted to him.

That last night in Vegas was a mistake, Gabby knew it, but wanted it anyway. She had to know what it was like to make love with him and it was beyond anything she could have expected. It also had scared her to death as she knew she could easily feel things for him that she didn't want to. She knew a man like Daryl wouldn't fit into her corporate lifestyle, so she ran and she had regretted it every day, which was why she never pursued the divorce.

Gabrielle had told Michonne that when Daryl had started calling her, she was surprised and actually very happy about it. She felt they were really getting to know each other and the more she found out about him the more she liked him. The weekend they had spent together solidified the fact that she was in love with him, but then he had vanished from her life without a word. That's why Michonne was here and if Gabby knew it she would kill her.

" _Ah fuck, she was here about Gabrielle_ ," Daryl realized. He did not need this. "Michonne, this ain't any of your business. It's between me and Gabrielle. Just stay out of it."

"Hell no. You both made this my business when you screwed up my wedding vacation in Las Vegas. I supported you then and now it's my turn to support Gabby. I gave her hell for messing with you and now you go and do it to her? What was two weeks ago payback? Or you thought she'd be an easy fuck again?" Michonne wanted answers and she wanted them now. If Rick knew she was at Daryl's he would be furious at her, but she would deal with that later.

Daryl laid his pounding head in his hands. With all of his faults, he tried to be an honest man. He just wasn't that with Gabrielle and he regretted that.

"I spent a weekend with Gabrielle at her place. It was fuckin' great. She was great and the hottest woman I've ever known or been with."

Michonne cleared the throat loudly.

That caused Daryl to crack a smile. "You too, but you're like a sister to me…Princess ain't."

"Understood…go on."

"The whole time I was there, I saw the huge difference in us. Have you seen her place?" Michonne nodded that she had. " 'kay now compare it to this place. Could you ever see her comfortable in a piece of shit apartment like this? Her bedroom is bigger than this entire apartment. I can't compete with that."

Daryl _'I Barely Have A Pot To Piss In'_ Dixon at your service.

Daryl got up and started pacing the room. "Maybe she woulda put up with me for a little while, but then when we couldn't afford to do the shit she would want to do or buy another five hundred dollar fuckin' espresso machine, it would get old fast and she'd be out the door. I just sped things up."

"Do you care about her?"

Daryl didn't answer Michonne he simply looked at her and she saw it in his eyes. The confusion, the hurt and most of all the love.

"Oh my God you love her, don't you?" Michonne realized. Everything he said suddenly made sense. Even though he loved her he was afraid of her rejecting him, because he didn't make the money she did and lived much simpler. Gabrielle had spent a good portion of her life poor and while she wasn't rich by any means, she lived well. Much better than he did. But Gabby was also in a lot of debt.

"I finally understand why you did what you did. I don't agree with it, but I understand it. The Gabby you see now is not the Gabby I grew up with. I told you her story already, so don't forget you come from similar backgrounds," she reminded him. Michonne had to try to change his mind.

"Yeah, she makes more money than you, also more than Rick or me, but that doesn't stop me from being her friend. That beautiful condo she has? She bought it when she was sure she was getting a promotion last year, but that never happened. Between the mortgage and the HOA fees, she's in over her head. And she carries high balances on her credit cards." Daryl turned his head to look at Michonne. "She lives beyond her means and it's catching up with her. She's thinking of selling the condo. We talked about that last night too. Her life may be different than yours right now, but that doesn't make it better, Daryl."

Michonne patted the cushion next to her looking for Daryl to sit down. She took his hand in hers, "Believe it or not, I think you guys belong together, but that's up to you two. I don't think it's fair for you to make the decision for both of you, especially since you haven't given Gabby a chance to tell you how she feels. You deserve someone to love who loves you back. Talk to her, please?"

Daryl's face was as cold as ice, but Michonne knew he did that when he was trying to hold his emotions in check. She knew he was struggling and all she could hope for was that he would give Gabby a chance. She stood up first and he followed her.

Michonne wrapped her arms around him and gave him a strong hug. At first he just stood there, but then he finally brought his arms up around her too. "I love you, Daryl. Don't forget that."

"I won't," he told her. "Love you too." There were very few people in this world that Daryl had ever loved. Along with the Grimes Family, Michonne was the only other person that he did, that was until he met Gabrielle and she turned his life upside down.

"Call her please and at least talk this out? Okay?"

"I'll think 'bout it," he told her. It was all he could promise right now. He had a lot of thinking to do first. Michonne kissed him on his unshaven cheek and he closed the door a she headed down the hall. He watched for her out his second floor window to make sure she made it to her car alright. Daryl saw her drive off in her open-topped Jeep, before checking out the disaster his apartment had turned into. Living like this was one of the reasons he stopped living with his brother and here he was surround by filth. He definitely had some cleaning to do first, and then he would figure out his life. It sure sounded easier than it was.

* * *

 **A/N -** WOW! you guys are awesome! The amount of reviews/comments I received after last chapter was amazing! This is turning into my all time favorite story I wrote. Shout outs to - All of the 'guests' that reviewed was great. Thank you many of my regulars and some new people - WalkingAddiction, Enjoi88, jeanf, Lady Jensen, East Denise, RBGzMom and JayMars. Thank you so much everyone! And especially Miss October 13!


	20. Chapter 20

**Chapter 20**

Gabrielle was sitting at her dining room table with her laptop and her bills piled up all around her. She never should have bought the condo. Of course she fell in love with it at first sight, how could she not with the floor to ceiling windows throughout the great room, the gourmet kitchen that she rarely used and more space than she ever could imagine. It was the exact opposite from where she grew up and she bought it without thinking of the consequences.

She couldn't afford it, especially after they gave the vice president position that she deserved to that brown-nosing Neil Stoddard. It should have been hers without question as her work was exceptional and innovative. Neil's wasn't.

That's when she finally realized that she worked for a company that had the old fashion boys' club mentality. She deserved that promotion and Neil did not. It was a huge blow to her ego.

By the time she found out Neil got the job, Gabrielle had already moved in. Now eighteen months later she was paying the price. As much as she hated to admit it, she needed to sell the apartment and get a lesser expensive place. That would make her life so much easier and she could start to pay off more on her credit cards. It was time to get her life in order.

The phone rang startling her for a second. Her first thought was, "Maybe it's Daryl?" Caller ID told her otherwise, it was Michonne. Her heart sank again.

"Hey," she answered somberly.

"Promise me you won't yell at me until you've heard everything," Michonne said.

"What did you do?"

"You have to promise me first, Gabby."

"Fine," Gabrielle replied. "Now spill."

"I talked to Daryl."

Michonne had to pull the phone away from her ear because Gabby screamed her name so loud.

'You promised to listen first and yell afterwards, Gabrielle Parsons so unless you don't want to know what Mr. Dixon had to say…"

Leave it to Michonne to put herself in the middle of her love life. Gabrielle moved over to her sofa to lie down, as she knew this was not going to be good. "You had no business butting in Michonne, he's going to think I sent you there…but…but what did he say?" Gabrielle's heart started to beat faster.

Michonne explained how his absence had nothing to do with his feelings for her, but more so it was about the difference in their lives. He felt he couldn't compete with how she lived and he had convinced himself that she would never want a guy that lived paycheck to paycheck and didn't that live in a fancy high rise.

"Really?" was all Gabby could say. What about their connection? Didn't that account for anything?

"Yes and to tell you the truth Gab, he's right. What has he seen from you so far? Your designer luggage cost more than his monthly rent, you flew first class to Las Vegas, and your beautiful condo makes his small apartment feel like a rundown shack. Which incidentally, he did grow up in." The two of them needed to compromise, Gabby more than Daryl and Michonne had to get her to see that.

"It's not your fault that you have a good job and make really good money, even though you spend it as fast as it comes in. I'm so proud on how much you have accomplished. But you need to see it from his point of view. He's also worked hard to get where he is. He never went to college like we did and does the one thing he's really good at and actually likes, but being a mechanic doesn't pay well. He was dragged down by his loyalty to his brother for most of his life, until he was finally able to break free. He had everything going against him from day one, more than you did and now he's doing the best he's ever done. Then suddenly through some crazy fate, you two end up together. He saw your life and knows he can't give you that. He's afraid you'll stick with him for a while, but eventually realize he's not good enough for you. This is him protecting himself and his heart. Daryl doesn't love easily, but I know he loves you."

"If you want him, really want him and your marriage to work, you need to make sure you are ready for the changes it will involve. Am I making any sense?" Michonne was hoping Gabby heard what she was trying to tell her. Gabby had to drop the diva attitude she had at times and go back to being the girl she used to know. She couldn't live like she was in Atlanta and keep Daryl. It wouldn't work.

"He loves me?" Gabby asked softly. The hesitation in her voice was clearly evident.

"He didn't say it, but I saw it in his eyes. I know he does, but is that enough for you?"

Gabrielle let Michonne in on a few things she had already decided about before she called. "Just before you called I decided that I need to sell this place. It's just too much. Hopefully, I can make enough out of the sale for a down payment for something smaller. That's a start. Once I have more day to day money, I can pay down my bills. If we had two incomes coming in, Daryl and I could live better than he does now, but we don't have to live like I do. I'm not sure I want this life anymore." Then she asked the one question that she was dying to hear the answer to. "Is he going to call me?"

"I hope so, but I honestly don't know Gab. He's conflicted," Michonne told her. "Why don't you call him after you figure out what you want to do?"

"I know what I want. I want him, but I think I understand where he's coming from. But Michonne he doesn't answer my calls. What can I do?"

Michonne took a deep breath. God, she hoped she wasn't going to regret this. "I'm going to text you his address. But promise me one thing first."

"Anything!"

"That you take time to reevaluate your life and understand exactly what you are getting into. Next to Rick, you two are the most important people in my life and I don't want to see you hurt each other," Michonne told her.

Gabrielle closed her eyes for a moment. She could work with this. She was ready to change her life and she had to convince Daryl to be a part of it. "Michonne I totally get you and I agree. I was already thinking about the changes I need to make before you called. Do I love living in my condo, hell yeah. But do I need to live here to be happy? No way. What good is having all this stuff if I can't afford it and I don't have anyone to share it with?"

"I think your head is going in the right direction Gabs. Let me know what happens, okay?"

"I will," she told her. "Michy?"

Michonne smiled at her old nickname. "Yes, Gabs?"

"You're the best. Thank you."

"Any time, Gabs, any time." Michonne hung up and knew that she had done all that she could. She hoped they both realized how perfect they were for each other even though they weren't exactly living the same life. Deep down inside she knew they would work, they both just had to realize that too.

Gabrielle lay on her sofa thinking for hours. Was she ready for her life to change as much as it needed to? She had worked hard to get where she was, but she knew she wasn't appreciated, not getting that promotion proved that. She wasn't ready to deal with her job right now, there was enough on her plate as it was.

Monday she would call the real estate agent that sold her the condo and talk to her about listing it. She also would stop unnecessarily spending the money she didn't have right now. Gabrielle would give Daryl a little time to come to the right decision or she would make it for him. They were already married, so it was her right as his wife to tell him what was best for him, wasn't it? That made her laugh for the first time in days.

Another thought popped into her head. Maybe she'd start the paperwork to change her name. Gabrielle Dixon did sound real nice.


	21. Chapter 21

Chapter 21

Daryl spent the rest of the afternoon cleaning up the mess he had created these last few weeks. Currently, his apartment was everything he hated about living with his brother. It was cluttered, dirty and disgusting. He was annoyed at himself for letting it get that way. It took a lot of time and energy to get it back to the way he liked it. He used this time to think. He had it bad for Gabrielle and he didn't want that to cloud his judgment.

Was he assuming incorrectly that she wouldn't be able to handle living like he did? Then again would they have to? There was no way he was moving to Atlanta, that was non-negotiable, but could they compromise and find a place in between? Sure it was embarrassing as hell that she made so much more money than he did, but with her contributing to their expenses they wouldn't have to live in a dive like he did now, but he refused to live in a fancy place either. He did have his pride. That would be another compromise. Could they? Could he?

Gabrielle wasn't the same stuck up bitch as when he met her, she had mellowed and loosened up. He enjoyed her now and appreciated the spunk that she had, but they still had far to go in getting to know each other. Maybe he had jumped the gun. He just was not sure.

Daryl hated to admit it, but he was scared. He was scared that she could hurt him more than anyone ever could. His old man was the only other person that had done that to him. He abused him mentally and physically as a kid and it had scarred him for life. His head and back were never the same. Gabrielle had the potential to break his heart into a million pieces and that was what Daryl was afraid of. He might not survive that.

He wasn't used to feeling this way. Typically there was nothing that he was ever afraid of. He had been in fights with men much bigger than he was and there had not ever been a situation he couldn't handle, except when it came to Gabrielle. His feelings for her scared him to death and that shocked him. He had never been involved with a woman like this before and he was clueless on what to do. However, he had the feeling he was fucking this up royally.

It took him a couple of hours to get his place back to normal, but at least it was clean again. Daryl still hadn't made up his mind on what he should do with Gabrielle. It wasn't as easy as walking away from a one night stand, they were married.

There was another thing that he had been wondering about. She never asked him about his back. A few women had and he hated the pity he saw in their eyes. Gabrielle had to have seen it that weekend they spent together as they were naked most of the time. In fact, Daryl had forgotten about the scars as he was too wrapped up in her. That had never happened before. When his shirt was off, he was always keenly aware of how they looked.

Daryl dropped down on his worn sofa and turned in the TV. Married…him? He never would that thought that he would ever have gotten married, hell he didn't think there was anyone out there that would want him, but apparently Gabrielle did...at least for now. How he…Daryl Dixon…ended up with a woman as stunning as she was still unimaginable. That was part of what had him mixed up, not even considering their finances or his lack of, she was drop dead gorgeous and he was… well average. Women were never dropping at his feet.

He fell asleep watching a rerun of some comedy show he occasionally watched. He still hadn't been able to come to any decision on his life. What was the rush?

Gabrielle spent all afternoon making plans. She came up with a budget she wanted not to go beyond, did some research on what condo's in her building were going for and even checked out towns that may work for her and Daryl to eventually live in. Atlanta no longer held any appeal.

It was almost dinner time and she couldn't sit still. Her mind was made up and she was happy with the decisions she had come up with, the only problem was Daryl. They still needed to talk and straighten everything out. Gabrielle knew Michonne had told her to give him time, but in her mind he already had a couple weeks. What was taking him so damn long?

Gabrielle realized that she really had only one option. She changed into clean jeans and a short white casual top that almost showed a little bit of her flat tummy. Her makeup was refreshed, but that was all she was going to do. Daryl did not expect her dressed up with full war paint. Gabby looked at herself in the mirror and realized that she had missed the person that was looking back at her. With a big smile, she grabbed her car keys and headed to Parkvale. She had a husband to find.

Daryl was woken up again by someone knocking on his door. He sat up and stretched, "Twice in one day? Really?" It had to be Michonne or Rick, but he was betting on Michonne. She probably thought of more shit to lecture him about. At least the apartment was clean this time.

The person knocked again and he called out, "I'm comin'. Keep your fuckin' pants..."he started to say thinking it was Michonne on the other side of the door. When he flung it open he was shocked to see Gabrielle. "…on."

"Whether they stay on or off is completely up to you, but we need to talk first. Can I come in?" Gabrielle was more nervous than she had ever been in her life. She couldn't believe she had just said that to him.

Daryl did not say a word, he just stepped back and let her in. " _What the hell was she doing here_?" he said to himself. " _Thank God I fuckin' cleaned, cause it's bad enough it's a crappy apartment, but at least it looks a helluva lot better than before_."

He hadn't seen her in weeks and she could still rock a pair of jeans. Daryl doubted that she knew what she did to him wearing those tight pants and white top that hugged her breasts. She still was the hottest woman he had ever seen.

The door closed and Daryl turned to his wife. "What do you want Princess?" he asked in his slow drawl. He would bet his new bike that Michonne had spoken to her and told Gabrielle about his screwed up head. That also was the only way she would have known where he lived.

"We need to talk and since you won't return any of my calls, I had to come here in person. Can we sit down?" she asked. It was so good to see him again. His hair was still too long and he looked tired, but he always made her heart race. He had on ratty jeans that had holes both knees. The button down plaid shirt long ago had the sleeves cut off with the frayed edges accentuating his broad shoulders.

Daryl nodded and led the way to the sofa. He let her sit down first and made sure he sat on the other end of the couch. She was too tempting. Dressed as simply as she was, she looked incredible to him. Even when she dressed down like this, she was still too hot for a guy like him.

Gabrielle's sharp eyes took in his apartment in a quick glance. It was small and older, but clean. It was nothing to be embarrassed about. Once upon a time she had lived in worse. "When you left my place, you were going to call me and I'm still waiting on that call. Plus, you didn't return any of mine, so what happened, Daryl?"

"You get right to it, dontcha Princess?" He respected her for being able to deal with this head on. He wasn't as sure about himself.

"I know there's a chance that you could have changed your mind about me, but I don't believe it, not after that weekend we shared. We had too good a time together for me to even consider that could be true. But, before I allow you to call it quits, I need a good reason why we don't belong together, because I frankly can't think of a single damn one." Gabrielle laid it all out on the table for him. This was his to destroy if he wanted to.

She never took her eyes off him. She had missed that handsome face with the angular cheekbones, the intense blue eyes and that unshaven look that he carried off better than anyone she knew. She loved the goatee and secretly always had liked them. Most of the men she had dated where clean shaven as that was common in the business world. He also had this adorable scruff on his cheeks, that should have looked lazy and sloppy, but it didn't. Not at all.

Daryl couldn't help the small smile that crept onto his face. She sure was a piece of work. It was going to be hard to face up to his feelings, but he was going to try.

"Princess, this ain't easy for me, just like walking away was the hardest thing I ever did. Yeah, we have some sort of fuckin' crazy chemistry, but that can't be all. You live in Atlanta and I live out here and there ain't no way I'm moving to the city. I'd suffocate there." Daryl looked up from the floor. He hadn't been able to meet her eyes yet. When he did, it took everything he had not to say 'fuck it' to everything he was worried about and carry her off the bedroom. He saw them filled with hope and love and he hated himself for having to hurt her.

"Daryl, that's such an easy fix. I've already decided to sell my condo. I don't have to live in Atlanta, that's just where I work."

"That's just plain stupid that you wanna sell your condo. Don't do that for me," he told her gruffly.

"Daryl, I'm doing it for me, not you. I never should have bought that place. I can barely afford it and there's no reason for me to live that way. It was a stupid rash decision. I already have an appointment with the real estate agent on Monday. Whether or not we work out, I'm still selling it for a smaller place," she explained.

"Small like this?" he asked. His voice dripped with sarcasm.

"I could if I wanted to. I've lived in worse. I have no problem with downsizing, in fact I need to."

"So you would have no problem moving in here in this dump with me?"

Gabrielle knew what Daryl was trying to get her to say, but he wasn't falling for it. "Yes, I would have a problem moving in here, but not for the reasons you think. We've gone about this relationship ass backwards. We got married before we even knew each other, so that's what we need to do next. If we move right in together, we're going to skip the most important step of learning what makes the other one tick. Does that make sense?"

He had to see that what she was proposing was their best option. Gabrielle knew she loved him, but they needed to do this right in order for it to work and she definitely wanted this to work.

"You saying we need to date?" he asked her. It made sense, but was that going to be a waste of time?

Gabrielle smiled at him, "Yes, we do. We rushed this once, let's not do it again."

Daryl's thoughts jump ahead of the conversation. "Okay, so we date a while and…that does include sex, right?"

This was the first time Gabrielle had laughed in weeks. "Maybe," she told him her voice softer and sexier.

"Damn…okay, …fuck I lost what was I gonna say," he sighed. He was too busy realizing that he couldn't think about her and sex without getting an instant hard on. His erection was already straining against his jeans.

Gabrielle saw the large bulge in his pants and was ecstatic. She was not going to stoop to using sex to convince him stay with her, but that he still so easily desired her was fantastic. "You were saying something about after we dated a while."

"Yeah, that right. So if dating did work out, then what? Seems like you got this all figured out Princess, what's next."

"You think I wasn't going to come here without a solid game plan? This…us is too important to me." Gabrielle took a breath before continuing. "Next is a place that we both can afford in a central location for us. There are a few nice towns halfway between Parkvale and Atlanta that would work."

This was a lot for Daryl to deal with. He was trying to run away from her, and she was not letting him. He honestly did not expect her to be this logical about it. It made sense, it really did, but was he ready for it? He had spent the last few hours thinking about her without coming to a conclusion, her words helped, but was that enough? He wasn't sure.

He looked away from her as he tried to process everything. His nervous habit of biting his thumbnail was in full swing. When he realized he was doing it, he quickly moved his hand to the back of the sofa. "You really want to try this? You and your big fancy corporate lifestyle and me a mechanic, with grease permanently under my nails? You think this will work? You didn't so that morning in the restaurant," he reminded her.

Why was he being so dense? "Not only was I incredibly hungover that morning, I was in shock on what we had just figured out. I know I said some really stupid and insensitive things to you and I apologized for that. I was just being a complete bitch that morning. Daryl, I don't know if we will work, but don't we have to try? I want to give it a chance. Don't you?" Gabrielle had given him everything she had. She couldn't tell what he was thinking. Daryl's face was completely expressionless. "Please take a chance on us?"

* * *

Thank you for all of the reviews/comments! Enjoi88 - You are right they both need to compromise for this to work. WalkingAddiction - you wrote "It's not the man you can live with, it's the man you can't live without." That is incredibly true and beautiful. Thank you for sharing. Miss October 13 and jeanf- Michonne does butt in, but it's their fault and she had a level head to help them. Thanks again!


	22. Chapter 22

**Chapter 22**

Daryl was feeling completely overwhelmed. He knew what Gabrielle wanted and that was the same thing he did, but he did not trust it to work. All his life nothing really ever worked out for him, so how could he expect this to?

Without intending to, Gabrielle was completely screwing with his head. On one hand he wanted to rip her clothes off right there and fuck her like there was no tomorrow, then the other voice told him to get her out of there. He did not need her messing up his life more than it already was. So, he took the easy way out.

"Will you please take a chance on us?" Gabrielle repeated.

Why did she have to sit there with those big blue eyes of hers looking so sad? He hated being a dick to her, but what choice did he have. "I don't know Princess. Don't know if I can or I want to."

Daryl stood up. He needed her gone for his sanity. "When I decided I'll let ya know. It's getting dark, maybe you should head back home?"

" _That's it_?" she thought. " _Did he even listen to anything I said_?"

Gabrielle just sat there and looked up at him for a few moments. All she could think of was that she lost him. His voice was cold and she did not know what to do. Except she was not going to crumble in front of him, she was not going to give him that satisfaction.

She got up from the sofa and walked over to the door. She could feel him following behind her. Gabrielle turned to look at Daryl for what she felt was the last time. "Take care of yourself," she told him and kissed his cheek. Pride had her walking out the door without looking back. She heard it close softly behind her as she walked down the hall to the staircase.

By the time Gabrielle got to the car, tears were freely flowing down her face and she could barely see. She rested her head on the steering wheel for a minute, before her right hand blindly searched the center console for a tissue or a napkin. She had to get out of there before she completely lost it.

Gabrielle wiped her eyes quickly with a rough paper napkin and took off. She had no idea where she was going, she just needed to be gone.

This was even harder for him than the day he left Atlanta. Daryl knew he was hurting Gabrielle, but what choice did he have? All she had asked for was him to take chance to see if a relationship would work and what did he do… practically threw her out the door.

" _Fuck it Dixon_ ," he said to himself. " _When did you become such a coward_?" Daryl started to pace back and forth in his small apartment.

He started having a one sided conversation with himself. "Any guy would jump at the chance to be with Gabrielle and I turn her down? Me? Why the hell did I do that? Just because I'm afraid of getting my feelings hurt? I'm never afraid of anything, so what the fuck is wrong with me? That girl is fuckin' gorgeous, smart, funny and so far she's put up with my shit, until now." He stopped pacing for a second. "Oh fuck! Oh fuck, what did I do?" It was like a light bulb had come on for Daryl. He had let her go, he let the woman he loved go without even giving this crazy marriage of theirs a chance. When the hell had he fallen in love?

Daryl ran for the window and saw her car driving off. He had to catch her and tell her that he was the stupidest asshole in the world. How could he not want to give them a chance, he loved her.

He grabbed his keys for the motorcycle and ran out the door, only popping back in to grab his helmet. By the time he got to the parking lot, she was gone. His bike was fast so he figured he could easily catch up with her. Gabrielle had to be on her way back to Atlanta so he would head that way.

Gabby however just drove with no direction in mind. After leaving Daryl's she finally found a place to pull over as she started to sob uncontrollably and at that point driving was the last thing she should be doing. It took her a while to pull herself together. Gabrielle knew she needed to get moving, but where? She did not want to go home, going back to Daryl's was not an option, so she thought of the only other person that would understand…Michonne.

She had not yet been to the new house that her best friend had moved into with her new husband. They had recently sold Rick's old house so they could buy one they could call their own. While Gabrielle did not know where it was, she did have the address. She plugged that into the GPS on her phone and had instant directions. While the voice told her where and when to turn, Gabrielle started to cry again. The last time she used the GPS was with Daryl in Las Vegas. Why did everything she do remind her of him?

At last the GPS told her she was at her destination. It was a cute blue house with white trim that had a big front yard. Just like Michonne had always wanted. Gabrielle breathed a sigh of relief when she saw her friend's jeep parked in the driveway along with Rick's police car. Even though she really wanted Michonne alone, she and Rick were a package deal now and Gabrielle was just going to have to handle with Rick being around for her meltdown. She just hoped it would not get back to Daryl.

Gabby pulled in behind the Jeep and walked up to their front door. She hesitated before she knocked. Should she bother them? Of course she should, this was what best friends were for. As Gabby rapped on the door she quickly started to lose what control she had over her tears.

When Rick opened the door, he was greeted with a crying Gabrielle. He opened the screen door and pulled her inside and into his arms. "Michonne!" he called out while his wife's best friend sobbed in his arms.

"Yeah Hon, who is it?"

"Gabby and I think she needs you more than me. Can ya kinda come here real quick?" he asked. Rick didn't do well with a crying woman. Then again what man ever did?

Michonne walked into the living room and saw her husband holding onto a crying Gabby. His look clearly said 'help me.' She pealed Gabby's arms off of Rick and guided her over to the sofa, where she let her continue to cry on her shoulder. She mouthed the words 'tissues and wine' and Rick ran off to do her bidding. First, he was going to change his wet t-shirt for a dry one. He could only wonder what his old friend had done now.

Daryl had spent most of the evening looking all over for Gabrielle. He had never caught up to her like he thought he would. He even drove all the way to her place in Atlanta, but she never came back. Where could she have gone? " _Of course!_ " he realized. She would have gone to Michonne.

It was time for him to play the friend card with Rick. He sent him a text. **_is Gabrielle there?_**

It didn't take long for him to get a response. **_yep. bro what did you do?_**

Daryl let out a sigh of relief knowing where she was. _ **almost let her get away. i'm stupid man. dont let her go, b there as soon as i can. in atlanta**_

Rick looked at his phone in confusion. ** _why u there_**

 ** _looking for her. on my way_**

Rick sent one last message. **_Walk the bike in unless you want her to run_**

Daryl heard his phone ding again and pulled it out of his pocket. He saw the new text from Rick. " _Good idea_ ," he thought and quickly sent back a thank you.

He managed to get to Rick's in just over thirty minutes. He literally flew all the way. He sent Rick another text. **_here_**

Rick replied back instantly. **_they're in living room talking. just walk in. i'm hiding out upstairs_**

Rick's last line caused Daryl to smile. His friend the big bad cop was hiding from a couple of women. If he survived tonight, he'd have to give Rick hell for that.

As quietly as he could Daryl walked up to the front door. He knew he owed her an apology and if he had to grovel to get her back he would. This was completely uncharted territory for him. Daryl took a deep breath before opening the door. He walked in to see the astonished look on both Gabrielle and Michonne's faces. He heard footsteps in the hall and knew Rick had come downstairs.

He zeroed in on Gabrielle. "Princess, we need to talk."

Her response was to pick up the ceramic owl figure on the table and throw it at his head. It was a good thing Daryl had fast reflexes, as her aim was good...too good. Daryl ducked in time as the owl flew past him and threw the front window. Glass shattered all over of the rug.

"Look what you made me do!" Gabrielle exclaimed.

This was so not going the way he had hoped. He looked around the room. Rick looked shocked. Daryl could tell Michonne wanted to kill him and Gabrielle who looked like she had been crying, was seriously pissed. Man, he was in for a long night and he had no one else to blame except himself.


	23. Chapter 23

**Chapter 23**

Daryl realized he needed to get control of the situation at Rick's house or he stood the chance of everyone kicking him out. He wanted to talk to Gabrielle, but he definitely did not need an audience. As much as he respected his friends, this was none of their business. This was between him and Gabrielle, no matter how much Michonne had already butted in.

Daryl turned to her, "I'm sorry, Princess. I screwed up everything and take full blame. We can fix this, just like you wanted, but will you come home with me and talk. I'm ready to listen. I'm ready for us."

Gabrielle wanted to believe him, but she was scared. He had hurt her twice already. "You've had some sort of miraculous revelation in the last few hours, Daryl? I wasn't good enough for you then, I don't see why now makes a difference."

"Princess, you were always good enough for me, too good, that's what the problem was. I'm not good enough for you. I'm a nothin', a nobody and I was 'fraid that when you figured that out, you'd hightail it back to Atlanta and I'd be nothing but a bad memory." Damn, he didn't mean to admit that in front of everyone.

His words had a huge impact on not just Gabrielle, but Rick and Michonne too. They both quickly looked at each other. Neither of them realized that he thought so little of himself. It staggered Rick and broke Michonne's heart to hear he considered himself to be nothing. How had they missed that?

"Daryl you would never be a bad memory," Gabrielle admitted. "Sure right now I am so pissed off at you for not even wanting to try to see if we could work, but this could never be a bad memory, maybe a sad one, but not bad." Could she trust him that he really wants to work this out this time? He ran away from them being together before, how did she know this was going to be different?

"What changed your mind?" she asked him again.

Daryl walked over to where Gabrielle was sitting on the couch and crouched down in front of her putting on hand in her knee. "You did." Daryl looked around at his friends and knew he and Gabrielle had disrupted their lives enough for one night. "How 'bout I help Rick board up this window and we leave them alone. We can go back to my place to figure this out." He could see that she wasn't quite convinced yet. "Please Princess?"

It was him calling her 'Princess' that did it. "Okay."

He flashed her one of his rare, but devastating smiles and gave her knee a little squeeze before he stood up to help Rick. While the two guys got some old plywood that was in the garage to cover the window with, Michonne asked Gabby if she was sure that going with Daryl was the right thing.

"Yes, I'm sure. I can see it in his eyes that something's changed. I need to go with him. I love him Michy. I have to try."

Michonne loved both of her friends and if they could work through this and find the happiness that she had Rick has, she was all for it. "I'm happy for you, Gabs."

As the two women hugged, the broken glass on the floor crunched under their feet. "Oh God, I owe you a window. I wasn't thinking when I threw that figurine at Daryl. I'm so sorry."

"Let's clean this up while the guys are looking for something to cover the window with," Michonne suggested.

The girls were sweeping up the glass fragments on the floor. They heard the sound of footsteps on the porch and the laughter of the guys. Daryl opened the screen door and reached out his hand to Michonne.

"Here's the thing that Gabrielle threw at me. It didn't break, only the window did." Daryl had a smirk on his face when he looked at Gabby. "Damn, almost took my head off Princess. You got good aim."

Gabrielle simply smiled at him and said, "Remember that."

Daryl was laughing when he went back out to help Rick nail up the board they found. Gabrielle noticed that Michonne was staring at the porcelain owl in her hand. "Something wrong?"

"The damn thing didn't break. How could it not have broken?" Michonne held up the owl. "I hate this damn thing, why didn't it break?"

Gabrielle started to giggle. "If you hate it, they why have it out?"

"Because my beloved husband gave it to me because he thinks for some reason I like owls and I don't. I didn't want to hurt his feelings, so I keep it out. Damn, I was hoping it shattered into a million ugly pieces, but no such luck," Michonne sighed.

They burst out laughing only to be interrupted by nails being hammered into the window frame. It only took a few minutes for Daryl and Rick to get the plywood in place. "Did you know about the owl?" Daryl asked? Both men clearly heard the conversation inside.

"Hell yeah. Isn't it the thought that counts?" Rick laughed. "She hates that thing, but she still keeps it on the coffee table. That's love for ya."

Daryl laughed at his friend. "You two are messed up. Hey, I'll swing by tomorrow and we can replace the window." Rick nodded that would be fine. "Sorry about all this shit man, you guys shouldn't be involved."

"It's what friends are for, man. I was never a fan of Gabby's but I really think she has changed. Give her a chance, okay?" Rick hesitated for a second, "And Daryl…you deserve this, so don't you think any different."

"Thanks. We'll get out of your hair. We've done enough damage here for one day," Daryl said shaking his head.

"Good because I have plans for my wife and they don't include you two," Rick said slapping Daryl on the back.

It took Gabrielle and Daryl just a few minutes to say their goodbye's before heading out. The motorcycle pulled out first and Gabrielle followed him in her car. By the time they got to Daryl's apartment building, they were both quite nervous. Together they walked inside each hoping this would end better than the last time.

"I got beer and water to drink, you want somethin'?"Daryl asked.

"Water would be fine," she answered him. Gabrielle found herself fidgeting on the sofa as her nerves got the better of her. She heard Daryl coming from the kitchen and took a deep breath.

Daryl brought out two bottles of water and handed one to Gabrielle. He really wanted a beer, but he knew he had drank enough lately and he needed to have a clear head. He sat down on the sofa with Gabrielle and neither said anything for a moment. He knew this was his to fix.

Daryl finally looked up from the floor at Gabrielle. He saw sadness and confusion in her eyes. "I'm sorry, Princess. I fucked up." It wasn't eloquent, but it was the truth.

"I think we both did," she said softly.

"I've never been in this kind of situation before. I've never had a girlfriend, so I'm not sure what I'm doing here."

"Of course you've had a girlfriend before…haven't you?" There's no way a man like him didn't have a string of broken hearts all over Georgia. He had to have meant to say 'wife', not 'girlfriend'.

"Alright, once in high school but that lasted like a week," he admitted.

"You're serious aren't you?" asked a surprised Gabrielle.

"Yep. Told ya I didn't date, that meant girlfriends too. 'Cept I kinda slipped past the girlfriend part and went right to wife with you, didn't I?" It was like he went from zero to one hundred without stopping. This mess they got themselves in was so confusing.

"I know I told ya, I would think 'bout us, but that's all I've been doing since we got back from Vegas. This is all new to me and I think it just scared me to be completely honest. I don't understand why someone like you would want someone like me?" He still felt that she was making a mistake choosing him, but he was tired of trying to do the right thing. It only brought him heartache.

"I'm glad you said that, because I want to get this out in the open." Gabrielle moved closer to him and took his hand in hers. "I know I said in Las Vegas that you wouldn't fit in with my life, but I was wrong, so wrong. Please don't let those horrible words I said make you believe that you aren't good enough. You are a good, honest and loyal man. I couldn't ask for more." She so regretted saying those awful things to him. She was embarrassed for ever having thought that.

As Daryl took in Gabrielle's words he realized that she wasn't the same person she was in Vegas. She had really changed. He had hoped all these weeks that the Gabrielle he was getting to know was the real one. And it was.

Daryl knew he loved her more than anyone else in his whole life. "Okay, I spent the last few weeks struggling with the realization that what I felt for you scared the shit outta me. It took you leaving today to finally knock some sense into me. I know it won't be easy. I've never done a relationship, I'm sure I'll fuck up a lot, but if you're willing to take that chance on me. I'm willing to try. We have to, don't we?"

Gabrielle brushed his bangs out of his eyes. "That's what I was trying to tell you! You…you…frustrating wonderful man! Of course I want to try, because I know it will work," Gabrielle told him while throwing her arms around his neck. Now that she was practically in his lap, Gabrielle looked at him with a sexy smile that Daryl felt instantly in his pants. "So what's next for us, Mr. Dixon?"

Daryl picked her up and with Gabrielle in his arms he started to head out of the living room. "Where are we going?" she asked him.

"You asked what was next. The bedroom is next Mrs. Dixon, cause you did say that if we dated, there could be sex and that's what's next. Sex."

Gabrielle giggled as he carried her to into the room and laid her down on the bed. Daryl lay down next to her and pulled her into his arms. He kissed her softly at first, then harder. Her arms went around his neck, holding him closer, while his hands ran smoothly over her hip and thighs.

It had been too long for Daryl. For a man that had never regularly gotten laid, few days he had spent with Gabrielle had him addicted to her and her body. It felt like years since he had touched her instead of weeks. His body missed her so bad that he was aching in need the second she moved closer to him. He wanted nothing more than to strip her of her clothes and plunge himself into her, but today needed to be more. It was not just about the sex, but about them.

Daryl decided to take it slow this time. They did fast and hard, well…really well, but Gabrielle deserved more and he was going to try to give it to her. He would be learning as he went along…again.

His hands didn't roam further than touching her on her back and down to her legs. His mouth controlled hers though. He couldn't help it. Lips and tongues sought to taste each other over and over again. God, he loved kissing her. How did he ever think he could live without this?

They simply kissed for the longest time and Gabrielle found that she liked this new Daryl. There were times when hard and fast was what they needed, but not tonight. They had all night to experience each other slow and loving, and Gabrielle realized that's just what she needed. Daryl seemed to be able to read her better than she did herself.

Finally, when he could not take it anymore his hand slipped under her shirt and touched her bare skin. First, he stroked up and down her back, before wandering to find her breast. He cupped her through her lace bra causing a small whimper to come out of Gabrielle.

"Like that dontcha?" he whispered to her.

"You know I do," she moaned. Gabrielle took her hands from holding onto Daryl and found the hem of her shirt. She pulled it up over her head and Daryl helped her out of it.

His lips found her through the bra as he tried to pull her into his mouth through the fabric. It shouldn't been erotic, but it was as he teased her. It didn't take long for Daryl to reach behind her and one handedly he unhooked her bra. Together they easily got rid of the barrier so Daryl could lavish his attention to her breasts without anything getting in the way.

He reached out and ran his fingers over her nipples, watching as they pebbled from his stroke. He'd never get enough of the whimpers she elicited from his slightest touch. His hand continued to fondle her right breast, while his mouth descended on her left. Gabrielle's light moans increased and she started to become frantic for him.

"Easy, Princess, we're not there yet," he told her.

"Why?" she whined making Daryl smile. Yeah, he was doing this right.

He felt her fingers grabbing onto his shirt and pulling it up over his head. "It's only fair," she told him with a smirk.

"Yeah, but I have it so much better," he said taking ahold of her nipple between his teeth.

"Maybe, but I love looking at you just as much." Gabrielle ran her fingers through his hair and kept him tight against her. She felt his fingers caress down her side before squeezing her butt. Her jeans were in the way. " _God why isn't he taking off my pants_?" she desperately wondered.

Then it was like he read her mind as she felt the button unsnap and the zipper slowly lowered. Instead of being relieved that he was finally taking her pants off, Gabrielle found herself even more anxious for him to speed this along. His going so slow was driving her crazy with need. She wanted him to touch her everywhere at once.

Daryl pushed her jeans and panties off and over her hips at the same time. Gabrielle kicked them off as quickly as she could, leaving her bare to his eyes. Gabrielle could see that he was coming back for a kiss, but she stopped him. He gave her a confused look, until he felt her fingers fumbling with his zipper.

"You have no patience, Princess," he laughed as took over removing his jeans, finally lying next to her naked with his index finger drawing light circles around her sensitive breast.

"You are enjoying torturing me aren't you," she moaned. "Two can play that game."

Gabrielle reached down and took his already hard shaft in her hand. This time it was Daryl that moaned loudly and she started to stroke him. He lay still for a few minutes reveling in how good her hand felt on him. Then he took his fingers and reached down between her things finding her thoroughly wet for him.

He couldn't help but slowly push one finger inside of her. Gabrielle's response was to instantly push against his hand with her body. While he moved his now two fingers inside of her, his thumb rubbed on her sensitive bud. Gabby couldn't help but moan loudly as he excited her more and more.

Daryl then decided to try something he had never done before. He kissed her hip, moving to her inner thigh, then to her bare skin where his fingers were wreaking havoc on her senses. He loved the fact that she shaved down here. It hadn't been anything he had ever thought about before, but it was sexy as hell.

Gabrielle cried out when he slowly pulled his fingers out of her. She did not want him to stop as it felt too good. But, when he spread her apart and kissed her swollen bud Gabby thought she had died and gone to heaven. She had a feeling this was new for him and she loved that he wanted to please her this way.

His mouth was hesitant, but loving on her. Daryl was trying to remember what he had heard that women liked so he kissed her, licked her and played with her pussy. He was surprised on how much he was enjoying this. He loved the taste of her and he loved that he had her writhing on the bed. When he added his fingers back inside if her that was all it took to throw Gabrielle over the edge.

She kept repeating "Oh God," over and over again the orgasm flowed through her. It was one of the strongest she ever had as her body was arching off the bed as Daryl kept stimulating her. Even when it was finished, she still needed him. She just couldn't get enough of this man.

"Inside me…please," she cried out

Daryl instantly moved on top of Gabrielle and let the head of his dick rub against her entrance. " _Why was he still teasing me?_ " she thought grasping the bedspread in her fists.

A shiver raced down the back of Gabrielle's neck. "Daryl," she whispered his name. Her body so tight it was vibrating. "Please."

It took all of his willpower not to just thrust inside of her immediately. He answered her request by slowing pressing inside of her. He picked up a steady rhythm of pushing himself in and slowly pulling out until he was able to be completely inside of her. It was a grueling slow, but sensual pace. Together they began to move as one, their breathing became extremely ragged as they started to feel the explosion that the joining of their two bodies was creating.

Gabrielle was the first to start to slip over the edge. "Oh Daryl," she cried.

"That's it Baby," he groaned as he felt her inner body contract against him, throwing him right into his own orgasm. Their bodies trembled together as the strength of their climax overwhelmed all of their senses. Daryl continued to pump in and out of her as he filled her up with his seed. Eventually, the tide receded, and they both collapsed in blissful exhaustion. The two lovers lay locked together, hot, sweaty, and trying to catch their breath.

Once Daryl could move, he slid off of Gabrielle and she cuddled up next to him. They just lay together in each other's arms, not saying a word. They both knew that they just experienced something unique and special.

Daryl was glad that Gabrielle wasn't talking as he needed time to process what just happened. Sex just changed for him. He had always only worried about himself and not the woman when he was fucking and that's what he considered sex was fucking. Only when he started having sex with Gabrielle, did he realize that there was more to it than pleasing himself. Taking care of Gabrielle turned him on more than he thought possible.

Each time they had sex it always ended up being a frenzied hard fuck. They both liked it that way and he loved seeing her come under him, but this was just different. This wasn't hard and fast, this was slow and loving. They connected so much deeper this time. He had thought previous times with her were off the charts, this was even better. Way, way better.

That's when Daryl realized something. He had made love for the first time. This wasn't him getting laid or fucking to get off, this was what it was like when you loved someone and damned he couldn't wait to do it again.

He turned his head to look at his wife. He hadn't planned on ever getting married, but he did. He also hadn't planned on falling in love with her, but he did. Daryl put his finger under her chin and tilted her head so she was looking up at him. "I love you," he told her softly. He had never said that to another woman before in his entire life..

Gabrielle's heart skipped a beat. She had waited her whole life to find him. "I love you too, Daryl." They sealed their love with a kiss. Then another and another and they didn't stop there. They proved their love for each other all night long.

* * *

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Thank you everyone for continually reading ' _Taking a Chance_.'


	24. Chapter 24

**Chapter 24**

Gabrielle stayed the night at Daryl's with them making love several more times. The last time was just before she needed to go home to Atlanta. They were tangled in the bed sheets not quite ready to let go of each other.

"Can I ask you a question?" Gabrielle asked Daryl as her index finger traced an imaginary pattern on his chest.

"Shoot," he told her. He had nothing to hide.

"What happened to your back?" Her eyes met his surprised ones.

He had nothing to hide, except that. "You sure you want to know, Princess?" They had spent time together in Las Vegas, an entire weekend at her place and only now she was curious about his back?

She shook her head yes. Gabrielle had noticed his back in Vegas, but did not want to say anything to him. That was supposed to have been just a hook up to remember him by and she was not ready to get personal. Now she was. Besides the two tattoos he had back there, there were multiple lines of scars, some crisscrossed and some just straight lines. Something horrible must have happened to have caused that.

"Not much to tell, 'cept my old man would take his drunk anger out on Merle first, but then he left and I was the only one left. I was fourteen when he did that to me. I missed two weeks of school because of it. When the fucker sobered up and saw what he did, he didn't touch me for months. Then the drinking got bad again, but I was getting bigger. We fought, but he never dared whip me again. I had a few black eyes and broken ribs, until one day when I was sixteen I beat his sorry drunk ass into the ground and that's when I went to live with Rick's family. I never saw him again."

Daryl hated telling or even thinking about that time in his life. He had been called a worthless stupid son of a bitch more times than he could remember. After a while you just start to believe it and it took most of his adult life to even start to realize he wasn't a nothing or a nobody, that he deserve more in life than what he was getting. That was another reason he split from his brother.

Of all the reasons Daryl could have told her of why his back was filled with scars, that they came from his father had not even entered her mind. That was absolutely horrible. Her heart went out to him, but she knew that the last thing he wanted from her was pity. Not Daryl. No way.

"Did he ever go to jail for abusing you?" she asked. They were lying on his bed facing each other. Gabrielle's hand was caressing his back the whole time. The hard raised skin from the scars slid under her fingers.

"Nope. Mr. G apparently threatened him with the cops if he didn't sign his rights away as a parent. The bastard signed me away thank fuckin' God. Heard he died about five years ago, so he's nuthin' but a fuckin' bad memory now."

"Good!" she told him her voice holding a bit of an edge to it. "I'm glad he's dead. Fucking coward!"

Daryl smiled at Gabrielle and pulled her against him. His Princess had spirit that's for sure. "It happened a long time ago. I've put it behind me. Most of the time I forget they are back there," he told her. He never forgot they were there. Never, He just needed her to think so, so they could stop talking about it.

He knew the one thing he could do that would get her to change the topic. His fingers drifted to her upper thigh and slowly made their way so they were teasing her sex. "Do we have time for once more before you go?" he asked. The sexy smile he gave her changed her no to a yes.

"Not really….Oh God…well maybe just…once more…God Daryl don't stop," she moaned as his fingers pleasured her. They made time for another round of sex as they simply could not get enough of each other.

Daryl stood with Gabrielle out by her car as she finally prepared to head home to Atlanta later on Sunday than she originally planned. Daryl promised her as he held her that he was going to call this time and answer her texts. Just to show her he was completely serious he texted her twice while she was driving home and called her later in the evening to say goodnight. He wanted her to feel confident that he wasn't going to run away again.

That next day at work, Gabrielle was walking on air and Vicky noticed it right away. She cornered Gabrielle in her office to find out what was going on. "He's back, isn't he?" she asked.

"He is," Gabrielle told her. Her happiness was written all across her face. "We talked and worked everything out. He didn't think he was good enough for me, isn't that stupid?"

Vicky didn't say anything, but looked at Gabrielle, before lowering her eyes to the floor. "Vicky, what is it?"

"Are you sure about this? I mean, he does have that hot biker vibe going for him, but is he long term material?"

"Why wouldn't he be?" asked a shocked Gabrielle.

Vicky smiled at her. "C'mon Gab, guys like him, you know are good for a good time. You use them and then throw them away. He's not the type of guy that you bring to dinner when the partners invite us to their houses. He would so not fit in."

"Who wouldn't fit in?" asked Ava who snuck into the office.

"Gabrielle is back with her biker guy and I think she's getting too serious about him. Guys like him are fun in the short run, but you don't take them to dinner with the boss, right Ava? I mean could you just picture that?" Vicky laughed.

"Oh hell no. You enjoy them for a little while, then it's back to looking for Mr. Right," Ava agreed.

Gabrielle looked at them and realized they were exactly like she used to be... snobs and she no longer wanted to associate with people like that. "You two are nothing but narrow-minded snobs. Daryl is a better man than any other man I have ever known. You would be lucky to find a guy like him, instead of these stuck up conceited assholes we always met. Just get out of my office."

"You have got to be kidding me?" said a shocked Vicky. "How dare you talk to us that way!"

Ava looked at Gabrielle like she lost her mind. "We speak the truth and you're getting pissy at us? Next time he breaks your heart don't come running to us."

"I didn't go running to you last time. You butted in. Just get out. Unless you have work business to discuss with me, keep your snobby asses out of my office. Now go!" Gabrielle pointed to the door. The girls left in a huff and Gabby was glad they were gone. She didn't need narrow-minded friends like that. The sad thing was just a few months ago, she was exactly like they were.

That night when she talked to Daryl on the phone, she never told him what happened. She didn't want to give him any reason to think that they shouldn't be together. It was just another reason she was becoming unhappy at her job.

The happy couple ended up texting every day and talking each night. Daryl had to increase his texting plan as he realized how quickly he was going through them. Gabrielle was a texting maniac and he didn't mind it at all, but he went from barely texting to running through his plan in ten days.

Most Fridays Gabrielle was headed to Daryl's place. They found there was more they liked to do around Parkvale and that always included a motorcycle ride every weekend. Gabrielle loved riding behind Daryl and they spent hours exploring winding county roads. Their nights were spent in each other's arms.

The condominium in Atlanta was up for sale, but so far there hadn't been much interest in it. The sooner Gabrielle could sell it, the better financially she would be and it would give them the reason to move in together. They had not talked about doing that yet, but it was what she wanted when she sold her condo.

One Saturday after a couple hours ride, they ended up stopping at Michonne's café. She was standing behind the counter talking to one of her staff, when they walked in. "Well look what the cat dragged in," she smiled. She had hoped they would hit it off when she set up the Vegas trip, but then that became a disaster. Luckily things changed. And even though she had talked to both of them in the meantime, it was good to see them together and happy.

"What are you guys up to?" Michonne asked.

"Been out riding," Daryl told her. He placed his helmet on an empty table.

"Now we need a snack, so this is the perfect place to go." Gabrielle handed her helmet to Daryl before turning back to Michonne. "What type of pie do you have today?"

"Apple, blueberry and of course peach."

"Babe, what do you want?" she asked Daryl.

"Peach with black coffee."

"Peach for me too and I want an iced cappuccino. Can you join us for a bit?" Gabriella asked.

Michonne looked around the café and acknowledged that it was unfortunately quiet. "Yes, I definitely have the time. This time of day we're always too quiet." Michonne gave the order to the girl behind the counter to fulfill and asked her to deliver to their table.

"Have you thought about doing something to bring in business at this time of day?" Gabrielle asked. Her marketing skills already had numerous ideas running through her head.

"Does my best friend who excels in stuff like this have any ideas? I've also been thinking of changing up my advertising, but I didn't want to spend the money."

The drinks were delivered and Gabrielle took a sip of her cappuccino before smiling over at Michonne. "This is what I do. Tell you what, I have my laptop with me, so by end of the weekend I'll email you some ideas of what may bring in additional business, along with new ad designs. Can you send me your logo?"

"Gabby that's great, but I don't want to interfere with your time together."

"I appreciate that, but this won't take me long at all. And after all the shit we put you and Rick through, it's the least I can do." This would take an hour tops and she really owed Michonne. This would be easy for her to do.

Michonne heard her name called and turned to see what they needed. "Looks like I have a delivery at the bookstore. I'll catch up with you both later. We all need to go out to dinner one night soon, okay?"

After finishing up at the café, Gabrielle and Daryl headed back to his apartment. During the ride back, ideas were coming fast and furious, so once they got inside, Gabrielle pulled out her laptop in order to jot down her ideas. She saw the email pop in from the bookstore, so she knew she had the logo she need to work with.

Daryl had the TV on low, as he didn't want to bother Gabrielle. He kept looking over at her working at the small kitchen table. He was fascinated at the intensity she was showing as her fingers flew over the keys.

It took her a little over an hour and she was done. Daryl was curious to know what she had come up with, so he got up and looked over her shoulder. "What ya got there?" he asked.

Gabrielle loved working with the smaller companies almost more than the big huge clients they handled at work. This was fun for her to do. "I have ten different ideas to bring in business during slow times from something as simple as an amateur musician, to book clubs or discounts. Then I came up with these two ideas for new ads that she can use for posters or in newspapers. The slogan can easily get changed out. Michonne needs to keep everything always fresh and new. Stale advertising will kill any business.

"That looks good. So this is the type of shit you do?" he asked.

Gabrielle got a devious smile on her face. She quickly sent everything in a file to Michonne, before standing up in real close in front of him. "You calling what I do shit, mister?" To emphasize her words she grabbed him in the crotch.

"Nah… no way Princess. You know how I talk, but…but what are ya gonna do with your hand there?" She had surprised him by grabbing his dick when he wasn't expecting it. But that didn't mean he wanted her to let go.

"Let me think. There is any number of things I could do." She squeezed him through his jeans and Daryl just stood there with a big smile on his face. "I could just let it go or I tease you some more like this." Gabrielle started to stroke him through his pants feeling him grow under her hand. "Or I could do this."

The gentle but firm grip of her hand was almost his undoing as she unhooked the button on his jeans and reached inside to grab his suddenly, achingly hard cock. She pulled him out of his pants and her firm strokes from base to tip and back again, set up a rhythmic pace set that was slowly driving Daryl crazy.

Gabrielle leisurely walked him over to the sofa, never stopping her stroking of him. Daryl did not remember sitting down, but somehow he did and Gabrielle is now kneeling in front of him with his pants at his ankles. How did that happen? He is so much under she spell that all he can think about is her hand, her hand that has not stopped moving and Daryl's praying that it never does. His head falls back against the sofa and his eyes close. God that feels so damn good.

One thing was for sure, he was definitely turned on. Gabrielle began to stroke him alternating from long and strong strokes to short and fast. She was rewarded with a ragged breath of pleasure escaping his lips.

Her hand motion slowed down and her fingers grip him down by the base of his dick, when he feels something wet at the tip. Daryl opens his eyes to see her tongue starting to lick him. She swirls her tongue around the head of his hard cock several times before taking him fully in her mouth.

"Oh…fuck," Daryl moaned.

"Later, Babe…later," Gabrielle says without missing a beat.

Daryl laughs at her. God how did he get so damn lucky?

Gabrielle rubbed and sucked more vigorously this time, taking as much of him as she could into her mouth. His gasps of pleasure along with her own fevered arousal encouraged her to take more and more of him. It was such a turn on; she wanted it, all of it, in her mouth. She wanted him so bad.

She felt Daryl's fingers slide into her hair as she worked her mouth on him. The short time they had been together was full of sex filled mornings, afternoons and nights. When they were home, they were usually performing some sort of sexual act on the other. Gabrielle wasn't shy, so her openness encouraged the lesser experienced Daryl to experiment more than he normally would. They had sex on the kitchen counter, in the shower, against the wall and a few times outside during one of their rides.

He had sloppy blowjobs before, but nothing like what Gabrielle did. He had no idea what he was missing until she took him in her mouth that first time. It was an incredible experience for him and it was one that he thanked God that she repeated over and over.

"Oh fuckin' God you are so good," he moaned as he felt her take him in deep so he hit the back of her throat.

Gabrielle looked up and saw him looking down at her with as desperate intensity that had her getting even wetter than she was. He had this look he would give her that full of passion, hunger and sheer lust. It instantly would make her want him to be inside of her. No man had ever done this to her before.

She kept on running her mouth all over his incredibly hard dick. She knew he was getting close to coming. If it wasn't how hard he was, the groans he was unconsciously doing was always the signal when she went down on him.

Gabrielle took his balls in her hand and started fondling them, this usually knocked him over the edge and within seconds she could feel them tighten.

Once again she took him deep in her throat as he started to come in her mouth. She knew many women that didn't enjoy this, but she did. It still surprised Daryl that she did, but he wasn't complaining. It was utterly erotic. For several minutes she continued to milk him until he was finished. Gabrielle finally let him slip from her mouth, before joining him on the sofa.

"Damn, you give great head, Princess," he said when he was finally able to speak.

"I do, don't I?" she laughed.

"You sure as hell do, now give me a few minutes here and we can…" Daryl started to say before he was interrupted by Gabrielle's cell phone ringing.

"Don't go anywhere," She told him with a mischievous grin before getting up to find her phone. Gabrielle found it on the kitchen counter. "Hey!" she answered when caller ID told her it was Michonne.

"You are a genius!" she shouted. "I love all of your ideas. I'm allowed to use those ads, right?"

"Absolutely. Do what you want with all of it. That's why I did it, so you can use them. We can talk more too if you like?"

"You're not too busy?"

Gabrielle walked and looked over at Daryl. "I have a few minutes, Daryl is still recovering."

His eyes instantly flashed to her. She wouldn't say it would she? He did not like that devious grin she had on. Oh shit.

"Recovering from what?" asked a curious Michonne.

Daryl started to shake his head no, but Gabrielle ignored him. "From the blow job I just gave him."

Daryl covered his eyes with his hand. " _I can't believe she just said that_ ," he mumbled. " _So fuckin' embarrassing_."

"Oh Gabby, that was definitely too much information," she laughed. Michonne was beyond happy that they were getting along so well. "Well…why he's getting ready for round two which may take a few since he's not a young stud anymore, let's go over your ideas."

Gabrielle burst out laughing. "A second ago it was TMI and now you're estimating his recovery time?"

"Stop talking about me!" Daryl yelled across the room. He'd never be able to face his friend again.

"I think we embarrassed him, so let's get down to business," Gabby suggested, dropping an apologetic kiss on Daryl. He swatted her butt as she walked away.

Yeah, she had embarrassed him, but it was all in fun. Something he certainly wasn't used to. The more time he spent with Gabrielle the more he realized he had been missing out on life. She had opened his world to so many different, but normal things that he knew he could never go back living the way he did.

He watched her pacing as she talked to Michonne. She was so smart and beautiful, and some little part of him still thought she was crazy to settle for a guy like him. But she was. He couldn't wait for her to sell that fuckin' condo that he hated in Atlanta, and then they could talk about moving in together. He was such a different man than he was just a few short months ago. Happiness certainly does that to person.


	25. Chapter 25

**Chapter 25**

Daryl drove Gabrielle's car to the restaurant they were meeting Rick and Michonne at. It had taken a couple of weeks, but the two couples were finally able to get together to go out. This place was not as fancy as the restaurant in Las Vegas, but it was a step up or three from what Daryl was used to. He even dressed up in the clothes he bought for the wedding and Gabrielle was wearing one of her skin tight dresses that would certainly bring attention to her. It had certainly made his jaw drop and dick twitch when he saw her. It took all of his will power not to rip it off her and take her right there.

"Why again are we going out tonight?" asked Daryl. He was looking for a parking spot at a restaurant he really did not want to go to.

"To celebrate and have fun. They are our best friends and they have been married for six months and…"

"We've been married that long," Daryl stated interrupting Gabrielle. He looked over at his wife and held her gaze. "What we gonna do?"

Gabrielle kept trying to read Daryl, but he made it damn impossible. That stony glare he was giving her did nothing to give away what he was thinking. This was a conversation they both needed to have, but Daryl chose a bad time to bring it up.

"Now, you want to talk about our marriage now? In a parking lot before we meet Michonne and Rick for dinner? Yeah, we need to talk, but not right now." Gabrielle put a hand on his arm as she could see he wasn't relaxing. "I promise tonight after dinner, we'll talk. I just wish that damned condo would sell, but when we get home, okay?"

Daryl knew she was right. Why did he say something now? It had been on his mind for weeks. When she said they were celebrating their friends six month anniversary, he wanted to celebrate too. For the first time in his life, he had something he actually wanted to celebrate. Holidays, birthdays came and went and Daryl never paid attention to them. They were just another day in the Dixon house when he was growing up, but this was different and he felt like being a part of the fun.

"Yeah, I agree my timing sucks, but we should have talked about this already. We've done the dating thing and I think we did good, right? We got married when they did and …we should be happy like they are. A double celebration cause we are married damn it!"

"Oh Daryl, you are right." The passion she was seeing from him about their marriage made her tremendously happy. "I agree completely, so we celebrate both marriages tonight. And later we talk about how this is gonna work and where we can live together? Okay?"

"Yeah, I like that. Let's get inside this overpriced restaurant before they wonder where we are."

They both got out of the car and Gabrielle hooked her arm in his. "Once in a while it's nice to eat a little more upscale. I'm not saying we do this all the time, but just once in a while. I enjoy places like this and so does Michonne."

"Long as it's just once in a while, but at least I get to see you in that dress. Damn woman, you trying to attract every red blooded male in the area?" She was still the hottest woman he had even seen.

"No, Babe, just you. You clean up pretty well too." Daryl had his hand on the handle of the door to open it, but Gabrielle stopped him. "You do realize that we just decided to officially stay married right?"

"Sure did and it's 'bout time, Princess. You've been legally mine for months, now we just gotta live it." Daryl began to open the door, but hesitated. "You gonna change your name?"

Gabrielle gave him a huge smile. "The paperwork is already filled out, I just need to file it." She saw the surprise in Daryl's eyes. "I love you," she whispered to him as she leaned over to kiss him.

"Love you too, Princess." His lips met hers. Daryl was a happy man. She was going to stay his wife and it was time to let everyone know.

They pulled apart and headed inside the restaurant. Gabrielle told the hostess that they were meeting the Grimes' and she took them over to the table. "About time you guys got here," said Rick as he stood up and slapped his friend on the back. "I'm getting hungry."

"Well I was kissing my wife," Daryl said nonchalantly.

Michonne picked up on that immediately. "Does that mean that you both are going to stay married?"

"Yes, it does. We still have details to work out on how and where we are going to live, but we are staying married. It's a double celebration tonight!" All Gabrielle had wanted her whole life was someone to love her unconditionally and she had found him and through all of the craziness that occurred after Las Vegas they worked it out. First thing Monday morning she was filing the paperwork to change her name.

"I am so happy for you both," Michonne told them throwing her arms around Gabrielle who was sitting next to her. "This is definitely a celebration!"

The waitress came over and the newcomers ordered drinks. When they arrived everyone toasted to each other. Much to his surprise Daryl was actually having a really good time. He did not feel too out of place in the restaurant and the menu didn't make him feel like it was written in another language.

They were waiting for coffee when Michonne turned to Gabrielle. "I've been meaning to tell you, your ideas were awesome. I've added some music in the afternoons from people that will work for tips, free food and a couple of books. My quiet time in the café has definitely gotten busier and the ads look great."

"I'm so glad everything helped," Gabrielle told her.

"It doing better than helping, in fact Trish who runs the gift shop a few stores down loved what you did for me. She wanted me to ask you if you could help her too. I told her I'd talk to you tonight." Michonne could see the wheels starting to spin for Gabrielle. "I know you did me a favor, but we may be on to something here. I have a feeling that once people see how good you are at this and the word will spread."

"I've always loved marketing for the small companies better than the big ones like the campaign we did for the Falcon's."

"Atlanta Falcon's the football team?" Rick asked.

"Yes. The company I work for does their advertising and marketing and they are one of the many clients I help handle. But I'm finding out that I really like to work with smaller businesses like Michonne's. This is giving me ideas." She tucked the business card for the gift shop in her bag. Could she make a living working helping small companies with their marketing and advertising? Most did it on their own because if cost, but if she was reasonable it may work. Her overhead would be minimum. Hell, all she needed was a place for her laptop. She had invested in several design programs already and she was good at graphic design. Could this be her answer to leaving Atlanta?

"What's going on in that brain of yours, Princess?" Daryl asked.

"I have a crazy idea that fits into what we are going to talk about later, so let me think some more," she told him. "It could answer everything."

Everyone enjoyed the rest of their evening at the restaurant. When the bill came, Daryl and Rick were going to split it. It was the most money he had every spent on a dinner before, but Gabrielle never asked him for anything in the weeks they had been together, so Daryl wanted to do this for her even if it meant skipping lunch all week.

The car was quiet on the way home. Daryl smiled to himself, he was not sure when he started to consider his little apartment 'their home' but he did. They just had to figure out how to make this work now… that was the complicated part. She couldn't drive in that far to work every day, nor could he. They had to find a middle ground.

Once they were back into the apartment, Daryl didn't even have a chance to ask Gabrielle if she had any ideas for them, before she grabbed his hand and lead him to the sofa.

"If my condo would sell, we'd have more options. I've had showings, but not one offer yet. It's a beautiful unit, it should sell!" she sighed in exasperation. "I could try commuting in, but that's going to be over an hour with traffic."

"No." Daryl said firmly. "I want you with me, but not at that cost. That's too long for you to commute. I'll move to Atlanta and we can come here on weekends. Whadda think?" The last place on earth he ever wanted to live was in a city, but for Gabrielle he'd make that sacrifice…as long as it wasn't permanent. They couldn't afford a bigger place until they sold hers, so finding a new apartment would have to wait.

"Maybe alternate? I don't want you to have to do that every day either. God this sucks!" Gabrielle took a deep breath before she told him about the idea she was tossing around. "I want you to listen to this with an open mind. I think when I sell the condo, I want to quit my job too and move out here."

Daryl looked at her for a minute. Was she serious? He could barely live on his salary, it certainly wouldn't support them both. "And?"

"I'm not positive on any of this yet, but you heard me talking to Michonne about advertising. I love doing what I did for her. I'm going to talk to that other store owner, but I think I want to open my own agency that specialized in small businesses. That's what I enjoy doing." She had said it out loud. Could she actually give up her high paying, now unrewarding job to branch out on her own?

"Whoa, Princess, that's a big step. You sure you want to do that? I thought you loved your job?"

Gabrielle snuggled onto Daryl's lap. "I thought I did too, but this last year, I'm not so sure anymore. They passed me up for a promotion that I should have gotten. The guy they gave it to didn't have my experience, my skills and he doesn't pull in the billable hours I do. Then I started to realize how often my bosses would take the majority of the credit for my ideas. They are using me and stealing my ideas as their own. It's not a fun to place to work anymore. And not to say that work should be fun, but I'm not respected because I am a female and that's not acceptable anymore. At least not for me. I'm not happy there."

There it was out in the open and it was like a weight off her shoulders. She no longer wanted to work at Goodman and Sheppard any longer. It was no longer part of her dream…her dream had changed.

"I'll back you with ever you want to do, even though I was looking forward to being a kept man," he smirked.

Gabrielle swatted his arm. "No you weren't!"

Daryl laughed. She was right, of course there was no way in hell he'd allow that to happen. "What about your friends that work there?" He saw her tense up suddenly. "Princess, what's going on?"

"I've kind of had a falling out with them, it's no big deal."

"Princess. What. Happened?"

Damn, she did not want to tell him, but she was not going to lie either. "We had a difference of opinion."

"That's was it? Bull, what ain't you telling me." Daryl knew she was trying to hide something from him. He nuzzled her neck. "C'mon Princess, there's more."

She hated telling him this. "We disagreed about you."

Daryl chuckled. His fingers lazily caressed her breast through her dress. "They didn't think I was good enough for the long haul, huh?"

"Nope," she sighed. His hand felt so good on her.

"Sounds familiar," he laughed. Gabrielle gently punched him in the arm. "Hey! You can't deny that you were thinkin' that way once too, but my sparklin' personality won you over."

Gabrielle burst out laughing. "Yes, you won me over and let's just leave it at that."

"Well if they don't know a good man when they see one, fuck 'em. You're better off without 'em." It surprisingly didn't bother him that her friends didn't think he was good enough. That's what they get for judging him before they got to know him. He would lay down his life for her and not many men had the balls to do that.

"I agree compleltely. But Daryl?" she said her voice taking a huskier tone.

"Yes, Princess?"

Gabrielle wiggled her bottom that was sitting squarely on his lap. A lap where she had felt an erection growing under her the whole him he was playing with her breast. "You said fuck them, but I'd rather you fuck me."

Daryl got up so fast that Gabrielle almost ending up on the floor, but he grabbed her in time. The next thing she knew she was being carried into the bedroom and when Daryl looked into her eyes she saw the hunger in his. When he put her down she felt the hard bulge in his pants as he pulled her tight against him. It was time to have some fun with her husband.


	26. Chapter 26

**Chapter 26**

The decision of who was going to commute was not as easy as they hoped. They settled on staying in Atlanta at Gabrielle's condo on Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays and at Daryl's apartment Wednesdays, Fridays and over the weekend. They were now living together, but it was exhausting them.

On weekends, Gabrielle worked on the new advertising and marketing ideas for the new clients she had picked up in Parkvale. Trish's Gift Shoppe recommended her to the bakery who recommended her to the sporting goods store. She was talking to new business owners every weekend and she was loving every minute of it.

Gabrielle didn't tell Daryl that the paperwork had gone through for her name change. She wanted him to see it officially on her driver's license and that she was going to do today during her lunch hour. Another surprise she had for him was going to be the name of her new company. The business cards were in a box that was sitting in her desk at work. Today she could bring them back to her condo and show him when he got home. She was calling it 'The Dixon Agency' as she was as of two days ago officially a Dixon. Gabrielle Parsons no longer existed, she was now legally Gabrielle Dixon.

She had already informed the Human Resources department about her change in marital status. Daryl had been already added to her medical plan and today she was having the name on her office door changed. The guy doing the lettering was almost done. It would read 'Gabrielle Dixon, Senior Associate."

She was getting ready for the fallout to happen at work and that did not take long. She knew that word of her marriage was quickly spreading through the office. Gabrielle was at her desk working on a concept that needed tweaking, when sure enough Ava and Vicky burst into her office.

"You got married?" Ava exclaimed.

"To who?" asked Vicky. "Not that guy Daryl?"

Gabrielle looked up from her computer. "Yes, in fact it is Daryl."

Ava and Vicky looked at each other and then back to Gabrielle. They sat down in the chairs in front of her desk. "You really love him don't you?" asked an envious Ava.

"With all my heart. But if you two are going to give me shit about this, then get out now." The two women had tried to suggest to Gabrielle several times that maybe Daryl was good for now, but he wasn't long term type of guy. That didn't go over well with Gabrielle and she hadn't talked to her friends in a couple weeks.

"We've noticed how happy you've been lately and maybe…maybe we were wrong," Vicky admitted. She would give anything to find the happiness that it looked like Gabrielle had found.

Gabrielle softened towards her old friends. "When you find the right guy and even if he doesn't fit into those plans that you thought were so important, you change those plans so he does fit. I agree with you girls that Daryl would not fit in at the partner's dinner for the associates, but that's okay. I wouldn't make him go someplace where he is uncomfortable anyway. He makes me so happy that I don't need all the material stuff I thought I did. He's changed the way I look at everything and I absolutely love my life now and I didn't before."

"God, I am so jealous of you!" Vicky smiled at Gabrielle.

"Tell us about him…please," asked Ava. Gabrielle did just that.

By the time she pulled into her parking garage that night she was in a great mood. She, Ava and Vicky were back to being friends again, and she was glad about that. It did not however change her mind about leaving the agency. Gabrielle was going to be her own boss, help the types of businesses that she enjoyed working with and be able to live with Daryl in Parkvale. It was a no brainer to her.

Daryl typically did not make it to the condo until around seven when he came from his job. Gabrielle carried in the bags from the grocery store where she stopped on her way home. She was making dinner and that alone would shock Daryl as she rarely ever cooked, but she figured that was going to have to change. Eating take-out every night was too expensive and they needed to be careful with their money.

As she slid the lasagna into the oven her cell phone rang. It was her realtor. Gabrielle said a quick prayer that's she had good news for her. The condo had been on the market for over two months already without a single bite.

She was hanging up just as Daryl was walking in the door. Gabrielle turned to him with a huge smile. " _God_ ," she thought. " _Only he can look that messy and tired, and still turn me on by just walking on to the room."_

"Do I smell dinner?" he asked looking around in surprise. This was unusual as Gabrielle never cooked.

"Yes. It still has at least thirty minutes to go. But you shower and get comfortable first, and then we celebrate!"

"What we celebrating, Princess?"

"Clean up first, Babe. Then we can talk."

Daryl gave her a kiss, before heading to the bedroom to clean up and change out of his work clothes. He wondered what Gabrielle was up to. Before he gave it too much thought, he wanted to shower. Hopefully, that would wake his tired ass up.

As he dropped the dirty clothes into the basket reserved for just for them, he reminded himself that he needed to do some laundry before they left Atlanta. He didn't have a washing machine, but Gabrielle did and with as dirty as his clothes got at the dealership it was much easier to wash them here than to find a laundromat.

Under the spray of hot water, Daryl let his mind wander and he realized how much his life had changed in the last year. Deep down he knew he loved his brother, but he was too much of a pain in the ass. He brought too much trouble to Daryl and he just didn't need that in his life now or anytime soon. His priority was his wife. Maybe someday, he'd connect back with Merle, but not right now. No way.

He had good friends, a decent place to live that would eventually get better, a few dollars in the bank and an incredible woman who was his wife. God, she had turned him on from that first second she stood in front of him in those red heels and that damn black dress. Throughout that whole trip to Las Vegas, she drove him absolutely crazy by pissing him off constantly and turning him on at the same time. She was beautiful, completely unique and all his. How did he end up this lucky?

He threw on a pair of jeans and a sleeveless shirt, before padding out barefoot to find Gabrielle. She was tossing a salad together on the counter when he came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her as he kissed her neck.

"Hey there," she purred loving the feel of him.

"You gonna tell me why you're cookin' and what's going on?"

Gabrielle turned in his arms so she was facing him. "Yes, let me get something from my purse first." She dropped a kiss on his lips before slipping out to grab her bag. "Here, look at this." Gabrielle handed him her new driver's license.

It took him a few seconds to realize what he was looking at. His eyes got big as he met her smiling ones. "You changed your name! You're Gabrielle Dixon now. Fuckin' A that's awesome!" Daryl dropped her license on the counter and took her face between his hands. "Mrs. Dixon," he said before kissing her deeply.

Gabrielle was getting lost in the kiss, until she remembered she had so much more to tell him. "Daryl, I have more. You're getting me sidetracked here." She took a deep breath, 'Okay, next is my new agency and my business card." She handed him the card and he saw it right away.

"Damn, Princess you sure took to my name. The name Dixon in the town I grew up in meant nothing but trouble. Nice to see sumthin' good associated with it for a change."

"Now I have one more thing and it's really good," she told him. She was giddy as a schoolgirl with this. It had turned into an unbelievable day for her. "And as good as those others things were, this is even better. My condo has not one, but two people interested in it!"

Daryl was completely surprised by that. "Really? Two? What does that mean?"

"It means I may have a bidding war and that tends to up the asking price. Apparently there is a couple that wants it and my next door neighbor. He wants to expand into my space. Isn't that great?"

Everything was finally coming together for them. Now it was time to start looking for places to move to. Over dinner they discussed renting an apartment versus a house. Neither wanted to even think about buying anything yet, so they were going to rent first. Daryl didn't want to spend the money Gabrielle was getting from the sale of the condo. He felt that was her money, not his. He did not want anyone to think he married her because she made so much more than he did.

Gabrielle on the other hand felt what was hers was his too and until he accepted it, they would rent. She hoped that whatever she made on the condo sale would make a nice down payment for them once she paid off her bills. Getting out of debt was her first priority.

Dinner was finished and Gabrielle was loading up the last of the dishes into the dishwasher. Daryl was behind her leaning on the counter watching her work. Her tight black yoga pants hugged her legs and ass so tightly he doubted she had on anything underneath it. He had learned that what she had on top was called a sports bra and he knew for a fact that she didn't have anything on under that tight scrap of fabric.

He just stood back with a smile on his face as he watched her bend over multiple times filling the dishwasher. " _She has the most perfect ass I've ever seen_ ," he thought not to for the first time. Once Gabrielle closed the dishwasher, Daryl stalked up behind her pressed her against the counter with his body. He placed his hands against the marble counter on either side of her, essentially trapping her. "You done yet?" he practically growled into her ear.

"If someone had helped me, instead of staring at my butt the whole time, I would have been done faster," she told him her voice becoming huskier.

"Yeah, but watching your ass was so much more fun."

Gabrielle pressed back and rubbed against him with her butt. She clearly felt his hard erection.

Daryl's hands reached up and each grabbed a breast, while he kissed the side of her neck. "Did I ever tell you what you did to me at that piece of crap motel we stopped at in Colorado?"

"No, you didn't. Tell me…oh yeah…what did I do besides…oh God, piss you off?" she sighed. Daryl's hands had moved from massaging her outside her skimpy top, to pushing it up so she was completely exposed.

His breathing got heavy as he rolled her nipples between his fingers. He took his mouth from her neck and whispered in her ear, "Yeah, you did piss me off, I mean you fuckin' pissed me off bad, but you were also the hottest woman I had ever seen. That morning that I used the shower and you had those damn tight jeans on showing every fuckin' curve, by the time I got in the shower I was rock hard for you as all I wanted to do was throw you on the bed and fuck the daylights outta ya."

"Oh…" was all that she could say. Between him playing with her nipples and his husky voice in her ear telling her how hard she made him Gabrielle was quivering.

"So I hadda stand in there with the water pouring over me, my dick standing straight up and thinkin' about you and that ass and those tits in the other room while I jerked myself off. That's what you did to me even back then, Princess."

They were both panting at the scenario that he had just painted. Gabrielle's breasts were covered with Daryl's hands until he slid one down inside her yoga pants and started rubbing her clit. Just like he thought, she did not have anything on underneath them. Gabrielle's head rolled back onto his shoulder as she let him touch her so intimately. His fingers were magic.

The hand that was holding onto her right breast, let go and Daryl reached back to undo his pants. Gabrielle realized what he was doing and used her hands to push her yoga pants down to her ankles and then she kicked them off.

Daryl unzipped his jeans and with Gabrielle's back still to him, she helped push them down his thighs. She could feel his cock in the crack of her ass as he rubbed back and forth on her. Daryl then pulled her back with one hand so her hands were on the edge of the counter, but she was bent at the waist. He put his rock hard shaft between her legs and teased her opening with the head. That only lasted a few seconds before he plugged himself into her wetness that had them both crying out.

They were completely wild for each other at this point. Daryl placed both hands on her hips so he could hang onto her as he slammed into her repeatedly. Gabrielle took one of her hands and continued to rub her clit. Knowing that she was doing that to herself practically threw Daryl over the edge. The first time he watched her do that, he got so turned on he thought he was going come without even being inside of her. It was always an incredible turn on for him.

Gabrielle could tell he was about to explode when he started slamming into her had hard and as fast as he could. She loved this type of raw crazy sex. Daryl was not a talker, but she learned her edging him on he loved. "Oh God, Baby…that's it, come...with me. Oh fuck…" She cried out as they simultaneously hit their violent orgasms. Gabrielle had to hold onto the counter top to keep her upright as her legs were almost jelly. Daryl was leaning onto her back exhausted.

"That was wild," Gabrielle panted trying to catch her breath.

"Hell yeah it was. I gotta sit down."

"Good, because I need to also and you are getting too damn heavy."

They collapsed on the sofa together, still half undressed. Gabrielle looked over at Daryl and smiled.

"What?" he asked.

"You sexy son of a bitch! That was so damn hot," she laughed.

""That's what you do to me. I'm practically hard for you all the fuckin' time!" he admitted.

Gabrielle leaned over and gave him a kiss. "I can't believe that you were so pissed off at me during that trip, yet you jerked off when I was just a few feet away. I would have been in that shower so fast if I knew that!"

"Seriously?" Daryl asked surprised.

"Yes, because while you were getting off in the shower I was trying not to picture you naked in there! We were so stupid back then!"

"You can say that again. Bring your naked body here, Princess," he said grabbing her by the arm and pulling Gabrielle on top of him. "We ain't done celebrating yet Mrs. Dixon."

"I love the sound of that. Mrs. Daryl Dixon," she purred into this ear. "And I love the way you celebrate."

Later they were lying together on the sofa, completely naked and exhausted from two adventurous bouts of hard sex. The reality of everything finally hit Daryl that night. He was one hundred percent married. He was actually fucking married to drop dead gorgeous woman who loved him. Him! Daryl Dixon who never had a girlfriend in his sorry life, had a hot wife that wanted him as bad as he always wanted her. She was in it for the long haul and he was loving every single minute of it.

He wrapped his arms tighter around a napping Gabrielle. He had exhausted her. Who would have thought that he would be good at making her come over and over again? Good thing he ended being a fast learner. She was made for him and he almost let her get away. He swore that no one would ever come between just before he drifted off to sleep.


	27. Chapter 27

It took almost two months for their lives to finally settle down into a routine. Gabrielle sold her condo to the man living next door so he could expand and she made a lot more than she had asked for because the bidding war between him and another couple had the offers going up and up.

Once she accepted the final bid, the closing went very quickly. Unfortunately, she had Daryl had not yet found the right place to move into. All of Gabrielle's furniture and belongings went into storage along with the washer, dryer and refrigerator. The new owner was demolishing everything so they took her high end appliances with them. If they ended up not needing them, they could always be sold.

Goodman and Sheppard was also a distant memory. As soon as she knew the closing date for the sale of the condominium, she gave her two weeks' notice. It was both satisfying and terrifying at the same time. Gabrielle was excited about starting her own small business, but it was very nerve wracking at the same time. She knew they needed an income from her to be able to live as Daryl didn't make enough to support them both, so she needed this business to work out. In the meantime she'd use some of the money from the sale to pay her share of the expenses.

Since her marketing jobs were just a handful at this time, Gabrielle spent most of her time searching for a larger place for the two of them to live. It had to have at least two bedrooms as she was going to use the second bedroom as her office. Everything was either too rundown or too expensive for the budget they set up.

Daryl had even asked around the dealership if anyone knew of a decent two bedroom apartment or house that someone may be renting. They were using every avenue they could think of to find a bigger and better place to rent.

A few days later, one of the salesmen approached him and asked him if he was still looking for a place. "Hell yeah," he told him.

The guy knew of a small house that his brother in law was getting ready to rent out. He told Daryl is was in Parkvale and gave him the guy's number to call. Daryl called him on his break and set up an appointment for after work, and then he called Gabrielle.

"Hey husband," Gabrielle answered the phone.

"Got us an appointment to see a house tonight at 6:30 over on Medford Avenue. Heard about it through a guy here at work," he told her.

"What are they asking for rent?"

"Eight fifty. We can swing that right?" he asked. Daryl was pretty sure that's the price range that Gabrielle had been looking at. He was hopeful for this house. Everything about it gave him a good vibe. He would love to live in a house and even though they were only renting, it would still feel like his. The guy said he still had a few things to do to finish fixing it up and Daryl hoped that it this place worked out, he could fix them and get some money off on the rent.

"We can swing that for sure. I can't wait to see it. When will you be home?"

"I'll be there by five-thirty. Shit, gotta go. Bye hot wife," he told her with a smile. They both said their 'I love you's' before hanging up.

The house ended up being perfect. It was older, but it had been well taken care of and the owner had recently done a few upgrades to it. It had new paint, carpeting and a partway renovated kitchen. There were hookups for washer and dryer, which was great since they had the ones from the condo. He was going to replace the refrigerator and assorted projects that he was going to do to finish up. Daryl convinced him to let him finish the work and they would bring their own refrigerator. It was a win-win situation for them both.

They signed a lease, paid the deposit and first month's rent and were going to move in next week. Between moving out of the apartment and settling into the house, it was a couple weeks before they felt like they had settled into their home.

Gabrielle was now actively pursuing new clients and the recommendations from her current ones was helping to sign up new businesses. She was happy with how everything was progressing.

Daryl and Gabrielle still took rides most weekends on his motorcycle, but they typically weren't as long or as often as they liked. They had gone for a late afternoon ride one Saturday and stopped off at one of their favorite places, The Monkey Farm. Mack,the owner, was happy to see them come in for dinner. "So sweet thing, when you gonna get rid of his sorry ass and run away with me?" he teased Gabrielle as she pressed a kiss to his cheek.

"Shall we tell him the news?" she asked looking at Daryl.

He loved doing this. "Sorry old man, but my wife won't be running away with anyone as long as I have any say in it."

Mack put his head on the bar. "No! You upped and married Daryl?" he moaned.

"Sorry Mack. We did, but it was actually a while ago. So I'm sorry, but you never stood a chance."

Mack came around her bar and wrapped her in bear hug and then shook Daryl's hand. "I'm happy for you both. Congratulations and the first round's on me."

"Then I'm having a Jack and Coke," Daryl told him.

Gabrielle started to laugh. "I'll have one too, Mack." They sat down at an empty table. "Now you know what happened the last time we both drank Jack and Cokes, right?"

Daryl chuckled. "Well I can't marry you again, so we should be okay with that. Let's just not do any other impulsive shit for a while." They both laughed. A night that started off drinking Jack Daniels and Coke and finished with shots of Jager was the reason they were married right now. That disaster had turning into an absolute blessing.

Mack brought over their drinks and sat down with them. "Merle's been looking for ya. He's been in a few times lately, but I won't tell him squat, but I saw him talking to Buddy Conlon and Buddy may have told him that you've been around. I just saw Buddy make a call, so you may get a visitor. Thought you should know."

"Shit," Daryl said with a little heat. "I ain't gonna go out of my way to hide from him, just avoiding him for a while was easier. If he shows up, I'll deal with him. Thanks Mack."

"I like you Daryl, you're standup guy, but your brother is another story. I got your back, man."

" 'ppreciate that. I really do."

Mack got up from the table. He had to get back to work, but he respected a man like Daryl and if he could help him out he would. "Burgers tonight?"

"Definitely!" answered Gabrielle. "Extra cheese please on mine."

"You got it, Honey," Mack said with a wink and went back to work.

Gabrielle turned to the now quiet Daryl. He had never gone into too much detail about his brother, but she knew he was nothing but trouble. Michonne had given her some insight, but it was time for Daryl to talk about Merle to her.

"Okay, it's time you told me about your brother. It sounds like he'll be showing his face sooner rather than later, so what the story?" Gabrielle was not going to let Daryl avoid this discussion any longer. She knew he didn't like talking about Merle, but she wasn't sure why. Didn't everyone have a family member that drove them crazy? Even though it seemed that crazy had been normal in Daryl's family and he was the unique being the sane one.

Daryl took a long swallow from his drink. His life was so much easier with Merle not around. He was surprised to realize that after all those years of living and hanging with his brother, he didn't miss him at all. He didn't miss the aggravation, the embarrassment or the upheaval in his life that always happened with Merle around.

"When I graduated from high school, I stopped living at Rick's house and I hung with Merle. Mr. and Mrs. G wanted me to stay, but I didn't feel right doing that. I lived there for over a year and a half, and felt like I would be taking advantage of them if I stayed longer. I never…never knew they considered me a son. I thought I was just a friend of Rick's they helped out as they were such good people. I only found out in Vegas, that they felt I was a part of their family. God, I miss them." He took another sip from his drink. Daryl didn't often get emotional, but the Grimes' held a special place in his heart.

Gabrielle laid her head on his shoulder. "I never knew them, but I'm grateful for them saving you from your father."

"What shoulda been one of the worsts days of my life, ended up pretty damn good. Anyway, Merle has always been in trouble his whole life. He's a bit older than me and as a kid even though I knew he was a disaster, I still looked up to him. He was into all sort of illegal shit like boosting cars, selling or running drugs and other shit. I certainly was no angel durin' those years Princess, what he did, I did."

"For years we moved from place to place either running out of money or getting booted out of places. It was usually Merle's fault. His mouth is outta control. The shit that comes outta it is just crazy. He can't not hit on a woman and will always piss everyone off. When I finally started to work regular like, he as spending my money like it was his." Daryl signaled Daryl for a couple of beers. He needed another drink.

"Bout a year and half ago he stole my whole paycheck. I had just cashed it and it was gone. He denied it, but I knew he'd done it. We started to argue and I could tell he was high. He's bigger than me, but I held my own. We both ended up a fuckin' bloody mess and said a lot of shit that we couldn't take back. I packed up my shit and left. Haven't seen him since, and I don't really want to. Don't need him, I got you now and that's all I want."

"Awe, Babe…thank you," Gabrielle gave him a kiss on his scruffy cheek. Daryl just hated to shave, but he never really actually could grow a full beard. She always found that adorable. "I get the picture on the type of guy he is. I'll just follow your lead on whatever you want to do about him."

Mack placed their dinners down in front of them just then and it gave them both time to reflect on their lives. Gabrielle didn't have the best childhood either, but her Mother loved her even though they were dirt poor, and while her grandmother didn't have a loving bone in her body, Gabrielle was never physically abused. It was just difficult for a young girl growing up alone in a very cold household.

Daryl had it worse Gabrielle realized. His mother had died too, but apparently she had been an alcoholic that ignored him. His father was an abusive drunk that had berated him and beat him so bad he scarred his back, broke some bones and almost broke Daryl. And now apparently his brother was no better. Gabrielle thanked God that Daryl had turned out the way he did. Sure it sounded like in his younger days, he was nothing but trouble too, but now he was as good solid man.

It was a relief to finally talk about Merle to Gabrielle. Daryl had realized a while ago how stupid he was to have stayed with Merle all those years. He should have become his own man sooner, but if that meant he would have never met Gabrielle, then he was happy that everything ended the way it did.

He just wished Merle would never find him again, but in a small town, he was surprised it had taken him this long to begin with. Since Rick lived here and he was Daryl's best friend, Parkvale was a good place to figure he's head to. Merle was slow in figuring that out.

Daryl was finishing up his burger, when he heard the door to the bar open and then a shadow cast over the table. Without looking up, Daryl knew it was Merle. He wiped his mouth with a napkin and with cold eyes he looked up at his brother who stood towering over the table. He felt Gabrielle squeeze his thigh in support. She must have figure out this was Merle.

Merle pulled out a chair and sat down like he was invited. It had taken him months to find Daryl. He would have bet his last joint that his baby brother would have crawling back to him a long time ago, but he never did. He left 'ol Merle hanging in the wind. You didn't treat family that way.

"So little brother you don't answer my calls or let your big brother know where you at, but now I see why. You're shackin' up with this hot piece and don't need your brother no more," Merle said giving Gabrielle the once over. He would have kicked Daryl to the curb too for a chance to get in her pants. Damn, how the hell did Daryl get a knockout like her?

Any small hope that Daryl had that Merle may have changed, went out the window. The look he passed to Gabrielle said 'see what I mean.'

Daryl took a deep breath. He didn't want to lose his temper in front of Gabrielle. He pushed his dinner plate away from him, before looking at Merle. "Bro, we both know that when I left it had nothin' to do with anything but you and me. I wised up and didn't want to live that type of life no more. You had taken advantage of me long enough. Gabrielle has nothing to do with it." Daryl finished his beer and waited for what he knew would be a bunch of shit out of Merle's mouth.

"You think you are better than me little brother? I noticed the fancy bike you have out there now and I'm sure this one here is high main-ten-ence, so how you doing so good?" Merle was of the frame of mind that what was Daryl's should be his. He had raised him, didn't he?

Gabrielle instantly saw why Daryl wanted nothing to do with his brother. He completely gave her the creeps and was treating her like she was a piece of meat. She wasn't going to say anything yet. This was Daryl's to deal with.

"I'm working my ass off, something you know nuthin' about, bro. How I spend the money I make is none of your fuckin' business. And…you do not say one more disrespectful thing about Gabrielle or you and I will have bigger problems then we already do. Got that bro?" The heat in Daryl's voice was clearly evident and look he was giving Merle surprised Gabrielle. She could tell that he absolutely disliked his brother.

No one saw the clenched fists Daryl had under the table. It was taking every ounce of willpower he had not to hit him. His blood was boiling. Merle was treating Gabrielle like a cheap piece of ass and that wasn't acceptable.

"Hmmm….Hmmm looks like she has you completely pussy whipped little brother. Never saw you ever act this way about a broad. A pretty face and…" Merle made a point of looking at Gabrielle's breasts. "…and a nice pair of tits, has you thinking with your dick. Never thought I'd see the day."

Daryl stood up so fast his chair fell over. Mack moved to the end of the bar as he didn't like where this was headed. Gabrielle had full confidence In Daryl, so she just sat there with a smile on her face.

Merle was not afraid of Daryl and they both knew that. They've fought before with neither coming out the winner. While Daryl was smaller than Merle, he was a scrappy fighter who gave as good as he got. Daryl wasn't going to start a fight inside, he respected Daryl too much for that, plus Gabrielle may get hurt, but there was no way Merle was going to get way talking that way about her.

Daryl leaned in so close to Merle he could smell his disgusting breath. "I'm telling you this once and only once. If you disrespect my wife one more time, not only will I beat your ass into the ground, but we are finished as brothers. Shut your fuckin' mouth for once in your sorry ass life." Daryl's eyes bore straight into his brothers. All he saw was a sick crazy man.

He picked up his chair and sat back down, putting his arm around the back of Gabrielle's chair. He looked over at her to see if she was upset or worried and all he saw was a big sexy smile. She was handling this just fine.

"You got married?" was all Merle could say.

Gabrielle held up her hand to show him the ring. "Nine months, one week and two days. Wish I could say it was nice to meet you, but it's not."

"Smart mouth on her," Merle said eyeing the couple. "You actually shackled yourself to her?"

"He sure did and Merle? He loves my mouth, ain't that right, Babe?" Gabrielle said while giving Merle a look of pure distain.

"Hell yeah, I do. Let's get the fuck outta here." Daryl dropped two twenties on the table to cover their tab. It was way more than enough. They each picked up their motorcycle helmets and before they left, Daryl turned to his brother one last time. "Don't come lookin' for me again. If I wanna see ya, I'll find ya."

Daryl then took Gabrielle's hand and they left the bar. Merle sat at the table surprised. His baby brother who never dated or saw a woman twice, was married? And while she had a sassy mouth on her, she had a rocking body and was nothing short of hot. But the bitch had turned his brother against him that Merle was sure about.

He wished he had shut his mouth so he could at least have asked Daryl for the money he needed. He was in the hole to a dealer for a couple grand and if Daryl didn't have it, he would have helped him get it. That's what brothers did, right? That Daryl stood up for the bitch surprised him, his mouth said shit that it probably shouldn't have like always, and now he didn't have the money. He only had another week to get it or he was a dead man.

Merle stood up and put his hand on the forty dollars to take with him, when a baseball bat hit the table. He jumped back, startled. Mack picked the money up off the table and put it in his pocket. The bat was now resting on his shoulder.

"That's to settle Daryl's bill, not for you to steal," Mack said with disgust. "See your brother is a standup guy and takes care of what he owes people, unlike you, Merle. This is the last time I'm gonna tell ya. You are not welcome here, so get the hell out of my bar and don't ever step a foot back in here again or I'm calling the cops." Mack just stared at Merle letting him know he meant business.

Merle turned and left the bar not even bothering to pay Buddy for letting him know that Daryl had shown up like he promised. He had no money and no place to live. He only had this piece of shit gray Buick and he had been living in it for weeks. If he hadn't paid for a load of minutes for his cell phone a few weeks ago, he wouldn't even have that.

He got into the car and saw his hand shake as he tried to put the key in the ignition. Damn, he needed to get high again. He drove off looking for a house to rob. Quick money from pawning the shit he stole was the easiest way to buy some dope. When he wasn't feeling so shaky he'd try to figure out a way to get back at his brother. Daryl owed him. Hadn't he raised him? Taught him how to get around in a world where everyone was constantly on their case? Daryl should be still kissing his ass for letting him hang with him all these years.

Ungrateful prick is what his little brother was. It was all that hot bitch's fault. She was controlling his pussy whipped brother by his dick. She as much as said so.

Yeah, he had to get rid of her, but first he needed to get high.

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A/N - Thank to everyone that is reading TAC! and a special thanks to those that leave me reviews/comments - Miss October 13, jeanf, WalkingAddiction, LJH and all of the guest messages!


	28. Chapter 28

**Chapter 28**

Gabrielle could feel the tension in Daryl's body during the entire ride home. He didn't say anything to her when they got on the motorcycle, but simply gave her a kiss before they took off. She could tell that Merle had him completely pissed off. That idiot certainly was a certainly a piece of work.

Merle was nothing but a lowlife, disgusting man that completely made her skin crawl. How he could be related to Daryl was an absolute mystery. They didn't look alike at all and Daryl acted nothing like him. Thank God!

Gabrielle could see why Daryl never wanted to talk about him. Even though they were close for too many years, which she simply didn't understand, Merle was nothing now but a complete embarrassment to her husband. That Daryl was the only 'normal' one in his family spoke volumes on how screwed it that family was. Daryl had his issues too, but nothing like his brother. He still tended to be a loner at times and Gabrielle let him have his space when he needed it. If he didn't hear her coming and she touched him, he would flinch in a defensive manner, like he expected a blow to come. It broke her heart that he still lived with these problems caused by his childhood.

She remembered then the way Merle opening checked her out. It was such a completely rude thing to do to your brother's wife. That he actually licked his lips when he was staring at her breasts made a chill run down her spine then and even now when she was remembering it.

If she and Daryl ever had kids, Merle was never getting near them, uncle or no uncle. That man was repulsive. Gabrielle also noticed the look in his eyes and his skin tone. When she was a little girl, she and her mother never could afford decent place to live, so she saw too many people strung out on drugs in their neighborhood. Merle had that same look.

Gabrielle saw they were getting close to home and gave Daryl am encouraging squeeze. His hand reached back and patted her leg causing Gabrielle to smile as she pressed her cheek to his back. God, how she loved this man.

The whole ride back home Daryl tried to get his emotions under control. He knew now more than ever, that staying away from Merle all this time had been the right thing to do. He was so fucking clueless on how to treat people. Not only did he insult Gabrielle by talking about her like she was just a piece of ass, he openly ogled her tits. As much as that enraged him, the thought of his wife's tits brought a small smile to his face. They were perfect and she liked to wear tight shirts that accentuated them. Yeah, she was stacked and they were all his.

The smile quickly faded as Daryl realized how disrespectful to him this that was. She was his wife for fuck's sake! He only hoped that Merle would stay away since essentially he didn't know where they lived. Unfortunately that meant staying away from the Monkey Farm during their rides and they both enjoyed going there. Daryl knew that Daryl would understand.

He turned the bike onto the street that they lived on and he felt Gabrielle give him a squeeze. He reached a gloved hand back and patted her leg. He liked how she handled herself back there in the bar. She didn't get outraged at his obnoxious brother, but just sat back and let him handle Merle. Her sassy mouth when she finally did speak up in her defense was perfect. He truly did love her mouth. He loved it smashed up against his lips and most of all when it was wrapped around his dick. Her blow jobs were phenomenal.

Of course by the time they parked his bike at the house he was hard for her. Gabrielle got off first and was taking off her helmet when Daryl swung his leg over and was standing in front of her. His erection was clearly evident and put a smile on her face.

Gabrielle took a few steps until she was pressed up against him. "Here I am wondering how that asshole of a brother of yours was affecting you and you get off the bike with a raging hard on? What were you thinking about on the ride home?" she purred.

"Your mouth and how fuckin' good it feels on my dick," he growled.

Gabrielle gave his bulging jeans a squeeze before taking his hand and dragging him up to their door. Daryl couldn't get it unlocked fast enough. The door slammed behind them and the keys fell to the floor as Gabrielle slammed her mouth to his in a desperate kiss. He fuckin' loved it when she was this way.

Their mouths devoured each other as their desire for each other skyrocketed. Their tongues waged a war with the other as hands grabbed and touched whatever they could find. Gabrielle was pulling his t-shirt over his head as he was doing the same for her. Their mouths separated for the brief moment they needed to get rid of their shirts. Daryl flicked her bra loose and he had her glorious breasts free.

His mouth quickly sought one that was already being roughly massaged by his hand. When he took her aroused nipple between his teeth and bit down just enough she cried out his name again and again. He felt her fumbling at his jeans to get them off him and her eagerness turned him on even more.

If anyone looked in their front window, they would see him sucking on her tit and Gabrielle had her manicured fingers wrapped round his dick. God, this felt so good.

Daryl felt himself being pushed backwards until the back of his legs hit the sofa. Gabrielle was trying to use her free hand to push his jeans down, but it wasn't working with one hand. Daryl helped her out so everything including his boxer briefs was now pooling at his ankles. Before he knew it he was sitting on the sofa with Gabrielle kneeling in front of him.

Their eyes locked on the each other. Even though the room was cool from the air conditioning, their need for each other had the temperature practically boiling and that happened every single time. Daryl loved that even though she was looking right at him, her hand never stopped moving. Nor did she break eye contact with him as she lowered herself so her lips laid claim to the tip of his hard shaft.

When Gabrielle took the entire tip into her mouth, Daryl couldn't help but drop his head back onto the cushion of the sofa, close his eyes and moan, "Fuckin' yeah." He kept his eyes closed for a little while as Gabrielle controlled his dick. She was using a combination of her hand and mouth on him.

"You are so fuckin' good at that," he groaned. His normally raspy voice was even deeper.

Gabrielle didn't answer him, she simply took him deeper in her mouth until she had taken all of him in. Daryl looked down as his body was starting to tremble from the orgasm that was about to explode. Just seeing his wife take him completely in her mouth that way and watching her work him, was too much and he barely had time to warn her as he exploded down her throat.

It wasn't a surprise for Gabrielle when he came as she could feel the changes in him that told her he was about to come. That she could offer him this release and how much he loved it, made this one of her favorite things to do.

She wiped her mouth with her hand and looked up at her husband. It still was a bit unbelievable that they were married. It was certainly done it the most backwards way possible as they married first, then got to know each other, but in the end it worked out and they were deeply in love.

"Princess," Daryl finally sighed. "If my idiot of a brother does this to us, I may have to reconsider letting him come around."

"Oh hell no you don't!" Gabrielle laughed joining him on the sofa. "I'm sorry Daryl, I know he's your brother, but that man is disgusting. I can't believe you that you two are related. He just makes my skin crawl. Did you see the way he checked my boobs out, with you right there!" Just thinking about Merle made her shiver in revulsion.

Gabrielle saw Daryl tense up when she mentioned how Merle looked at her breasts. "The only reason I didn't deck him was that he is my brother and I didn't want to do that to Mack. Anyone else woulda been dragged outside and laid out in the parking lot." Daryl gave Gabrielle a sexy smirk. "Princess, I know you got a great rack and those shirts you wear emphasize them. Just letting you know I'm gonna probably get in a few fights cause of them. Just saying." To emphasize what he was saying he reached over to her bare breasts and gave one a good squeeze.

He was surprised that instead of getting mad she just said, "Well it will be a for a good cause. Gotta protect the girls at all costs, Babe."

Daryl laughed and tackled her so she fell backwards on the sofa. The he showed her how much he loved 'the girls'.

Later that night, Daryl lay in bed not being able to fall asleep. Seeing Merle bothered him, more than he let on. His brother had been in and out of trouble his whole life, but never for anything that required more than a couple months stint in jail. Something was going on with him. It was more than just trying to find Daryl. He sense there was much more to the visit than that.

If Merle hadn't pissed Daryl off so much with how he was talking about Gabrielle, he may have found out what his brother really wanted. He also could tell that he was using again. When he was younger, Daryl had dabbled in drugs, but they never got a hold on him, like they did Merle. That was a completely different story. As the years went on, his drug use got worse and worse and Daryl knew that was why he stole his paycheck. Drugs were controlling him and that made him impossible to deal with.

Daryl had made his choice long before he even met Gabrielle. Living the way they did, day to day and getting thrown out of more places than he wanted to count, was not how he wanted to live anymore. He wanted roots. For the first time in his life, he wanted to live like a normal person and not like a bum. Not only did Rick help him with that, but he found an accidental wife that turned out to be the best damn thing he ever stupidly did.

His life was going great, but he'd bet his last paycheck that Merle was in big trouble. And as much as he disliked his brother and hated the choices he made, he was blood. Maybe in a few days he's track him down and see what the story was, but for now it was time to fall asleep next to his beautiful wife.


	29. Chapter 29

**Chapter 29**

The days flew by and Daryl never ending up calling his brother. He was busy working at the dealership and taking overtime when they offered it, busy with learning to live with Gabrielle and busy simply enjoying himself just too much to want to deal with the complications that Merle always brought with him. Daryl was enjoying married life more than he ever thought possible. This was nothing like when his parents were married. Sure he and Gabrielle didn't agree on everything, but they didn't have screaming arguments and he would never raise a hand to her like his old man did to his mother. They respected each other, which his parents never did.

Daryl wished he had met her years ago, so they could have had more time together, but then again he was a stupid dick back then and she would have probably hated him. They certainly didn't start off on the right foot to begin with even though there was an underlying attraction between them. This was probably the way it was meant to be, so who was he to question it.

They were getting together with Rick and Michonne fairly often. Sometimes it was to go out to dinner or just hang at one of their houses. The two pairs of best friends had married and became two couples that spent a lot of time together. For Daryl it was good not to be the third wheel with Rick and Michonne anymore. Daryl realized the benefits of being in a relationship when it came to other couples. He felt like he finally belonged for a change.

In the meantime, while Daryl was living and loving his life, and forgetting about his toxic brother- Merle didn't forget about him. He was still pulling small burglaries in order to get money for food and drugs. He was hiding out from the dealer that he owed all that money too, but that was getting harder and harder to do. Word on the street was - Merle was in big trouble.

It took Merle almost two weeks, but he used his tracking skills and some desperation to find Daryl. The one good thing the learned from their father was to track and hunt. He applied a variation of those skills to the tracking down his errant brother and was proud of himself that he had finally found Daryl.

He thought that Daryl may be living close to the only other person that was important to him…his buddy Rick, so Merle drove around Parkvale numerous times trying to find either one of them. Merle had never liked Rick. His selfishness always wanted Daryl at his beck and call, and Rick got in the way of that, plus Rick stood up to Merle, which of course didn't go over well with him. Rick was also a cop and Merle hated cops as it seemed all they wanted to do was give him a hard time or put him in jail. That he deserved to be locked up behind bars never entered his mind. Merle never thought anything he did was wrong.

One day he, he was parked at a fast food joint debating if he should check the garbage can for uneaten food, when he saw Rick driving by in his cruiser and he carefully followed him. He stayed back far enough so it wasn't obvious on what he was doing. He wasn't stupid. Merle watched the car pull into a driveway and park. Since he entered the house without knocking, Merle figured Rick lived there.

So during the week he hung out around town, trying to find Daryl on his fancy motorcycle, but he didn't have any luck. Then that weekend he parked by Rick's house to see if his brother ever showed up. Merle was lucky that it took only one Saturday of lurking in his beat up car, for Daryl and that bitch he married to show up. His little brother sure had it hot for her, as even walking up to the house he had his hand on her ass. "The slut loves it," he said out loud. " Ol' Merle here could teach her a fuckin' thing or two. That's for sure. She'd be screaming for more once she felt how good this piece of meat felt fuckin' her. I bet she's the type who likes it hard and rough…yeah the rougher the better."

He drove by slowly noticing the make and model of the car, plus the tags. It probably belonged to the bitch, he thought even though Daryl was driving it. Then he drove around to back to where he had been hiding to watch the house again. About twenty minutes later, he saw them all leave in two separate cars and Merle followed slowly behind them. They eventually pulled into the parking lot of a Mexican restaurant and they all went inside. Since when did his little brother start eating in restaurants? "He was so fuckin' whipped," Merle thought to himself. "That bitch has ruined him."

It was about an hour later when Merle, who was sweating as he sat in his hot car, finally saw Daryl come out of the restaurant and light up a cigarette. He figured his brother probably has a few drinks under his belt, so now as good a time as any to approach him. Merle got out of the car and headed towards the restaurant.

Daryl needed a quick hit of nicotine, so he popped outside to take a fast smoke break before their dinners arrived. He missed the days where you could smoke inside bars and most anywhere. He was going to take one last drag before going inside when he saw his brother walking towards him with a big smile on his face. "Fuck," he said under his breath. He just knew that Merle was going to mess up his night.

"Hey little brother, how you and wifey doing?" Merle asked slapping him on the back.

"Fine. What do ya need, bro?"

"Now why do you think I need anythin'? Can't I just want to say hi to my brother?" This wasn't starting out good. Daryl already thought he wanted something and well he did.

"Because I told you I would find you when I wanted to see you again and here you are suddenly outta the blue. How did you find me?" Daryl asked. No way Merle just happened to drive by and see him smokin' outside this restaurant. Plus, Daryl was completely aware that not one single car had come into the lot while he had been outside. Merle was here waiting for him and that made Daryl extremely suspicious.

"C'mon bro. We're brothers and I ain't seen ya in a real long time," Merle told him. "I'm sorry about Mack's. You know my mouth just runs off at times. No harm, no foul, right?"

"Dude, you completely disrespected me and Gabrielle. That wasn't cool." Daryl took a final drag off his cigarette before stepping on it. "Listen, I'm busy now. Why don't you call me and we'll meet up at ' _The_ _Junkhouse_ ' for a beer one night. Okay? I gotta get back." Daryl turned to head back inside, but Merle grabbed his arm.

Anger flew through Daryl instantly. Merle knew better than to grab him that way, it was always an instant flashback to their father. Either he would start screaming at them as they tried to get away or he'd start to beat them. He roughly shook Merle off. "Bro, I have people waiting and dinner comin'. I ain't got the time right now."

"Yeah, you're a busy man now with no time for your only kin. I can't wait to see ya. I owe money to a guy and I need your help. You gotta have something you can give me. I'm livin' in my god damn car," he pleaded.

There it was. That was why Merle was looking for him. Not that he wanted to apologize or reconnect, he needed money. He always fucking needed money. "What you in for and I thought you were living at the ol' man's place?"

Their father had died a quite a few years ago and the old shack he lived in had stayed vacant all these years. Daryl had heard that Merle moved there after the big fight they had and Daryl had left. There was no money to pay the rent in the small apartment they had. "Couldn't stay there no more, the roof was caving in. I need….like…almost three grand."

Daryl's mouth dropped open. "Are you fuckin' crazy? Three grand? You know I ain't got that kinda money or anything close to it. What the fuck did you do?" This was not good at all. This was a whole new really bad Merle. "You're using again, ain't ya? I can see it in your eyes, bro. Don't tell me you owe for that shit."

Merle looked at his feet for a second. "I was selling for this guy, but then I was using a bit too and then I needed to pay for a motel and it kinda got outta control. You can spot me the money, right?"

Even if Daryl had the money, which he technically did in the bank, he would never give it to Merle. That would be the same thing as throwing it away. Daryl made the split second decision that Merle was on his own. He was a grown man that finally had to take responsibility for his own problems. He was not going to bail him out anymore.

"Bro, I ain't got that type of money. You know that. I live check to check." Daryl could see the wheels spinning in his brothers head. "Yeah, I got a new bike, but that's financed thanks to Rick cause my old one crapped out. I'm paying it off and Gabrielle just started her own business so money is tight. We don't got it."

"Daryl, I need the money!" Merle said raising his voice.

"I don't got it! You're on your own. You fucked up, so you fix it. It ain't my job to get you outta another jam. Those days are long gone, bro. I gotta get back to dinner." It was time for his brother to handle his own problems. He was no longer Daryl's concern.

Daryl turned to head back inside and once again Merle grabbed him by the arm. "I need the money, man. The guy is gunning for me. C'mon you gotta help me out! You can take that bitch wife out for a fancy dinner, but you can't help your brother?"

Fire flew out of Daryl's eyes as he wrestled his arm free. Was his brother fuckin' kidding him? "You don't talk about my wife that way! I fuckin' told you that. We're done Merle. Done! Don't come lookin' for me cause I ain't got a brother no more. We are done!"

Daryl grabbed open the door and quickly walked inside before Merle could stop him again. If he did there stood a good chance that they would end up in a fistfight in the parking lot. He had hoped those days where long behind him, but Merle was pushing his buttons…bad.

His brother sure had gone downhill since they parted ways. It was no one fault but his own and Daryl was no longer going to clean up his shit anymore. He had his own life and a wife to take care of. Merle was going to have to deal with this on his own. He created the problem, so he could fix it. Daryl heard Merle yelling as the door closed behind him. Hopefully, it was also closing on that chapter of his life.

He tried to compose himself as he made his way back to the table, but Gabrielle saw through it right away. Unfortunately, so did Rick and Michonne. This is why he sucked at playing cards, his face gave it all away.

"What happened?" asked Rick.

"I'm fine. Where's dinner, I'm hungry," he said trying to change the topic.

"No, you're not fine," stated Gabrielle. "You were gone pretty long, what happened, Daryl?" Guaranteed they weren't married long, but she already could read her husband quite well. There was definitely something big bothering him. Even Rick and Michonne picked it up, that's how obvious it was that he was extremely angry.

"This ain't the place to talk about it, I'm just gonna say, I saw Merle when I was outside smokin' and it wasn't good. Let's just eat and leave it at that." Daryl did not want to talk about this here. He actually didn't want to talk about his brother at all, but he knew with Gabrielle there would be no way to get around that. He learned being married meant he had to share shit like this, even when he didn't want to. With Rick being a cop, it wouldn't sit well with him the trouble that his brother was involved in. This was always a fine line that Daryl had tried to balance throughout the years.

"But Daryl…."

"Princess," he said interrupting her. His steely eyes met hers, "Not. Now."

Luckily for Daryl, the food arrived and they could all now concentrate on eating dinner. Daryl tried to enjoy himself, but the enchiladas he was looking forward to ended up tasting like paste. Merle had ruined his dinner. As he forced himself to finish most of what was on his plate, he knew he had to cut ties with his brother permanently. His life was going great now and Merle's was in the gutter. He was not going to let him drag him down like he did for years. Merle was on his own…no matter what.


	30. Chapter 30

**Chapter 30**

The entire car ride home was done in complete silence. Daryl stared straight ahead as he drove, while Gabrielle was fidgeting in her seat the entire time. She was dying to know what had happened and clearly Daryl was not in the mood to talk. He had that stern look on his face that he got when he was angry and did not want to be bothered. However, that was not going to stop her from finding out what had happened at the restaurant.

The rest of the night just never picked back up and it ended quickly after they ate. The evening had lost all of its appeal. The second the front door closed behind them, Gabrielle turned to Daryl while they still stood in the entryway of their house with her arms folded across her chest. She was done waiting for him to tell her what was wrong. She had wracked her brain the entire way home on what could have happened and still came up with nothing.

"What?" he asked. She wasn't gonna give him any break, was she?

"Spill it. You've barely said a word since you went outside for a cigarette. What the hell happened, Daryl." Gabrielle took his hand and pulled him over to the sofa so they could sit down. "Talk."

He knew she wasn't going to let up until he told her. "It was Merle. He was waiting to talk to me."

"How did he know we'd be at _The Coyote Grill_?"

"No idea. Was just about to come back inside when he walked up to me. He must have followed us or somethin'. I haven't talked to him since that day at Mack's." Just thinking about it made Daryl pull out a cigarette and light one up. Gabrielle gave him look like he was crazy. "Okay, I know…I know you don't like me smokin' inside, but if you wanna hear this, then I gotta smoke."

Daryl always respected her request that he didn't smoke indoors and if he was telling her he needed to, this must be really bad. She could let it go...this time. "Fine, Babe…but what did he want?"

He lit up quickly, letting the cigarette calm him for a second. "What he always wants…money. And a lot of it. He's in the hole to a guy for almost three grand and expects me to give it to him," Daryl exhaled as he watched what he said hit Gabrielle.

"He wants three thousand dollars from you? Seriously?" Gabrielle asked astonished. "What for?"

Daryl didn't feel the need to hide the truth from her. "Drugs. He's used on and off his entire life and I know it's become a serious addiction. That's why I moved out on him. I couldn't take it or him anymore."

"I thought he was high at Daryl's when he showed up there," Gabrielle admitted.

Daryl nodded in agreement. "He was and he was tonight too. Now Princess, I was no angel back in the day either. I told you my past wasn't pretty. I got involved and did shit I shouldna've done following Merle around all those years, but I changed changed…he didn't. Merle is his own worst enemy, always has been."

"What are we going to do?" she asked him. Gabrielle did not want to give Merle that type of money. It was part of their nest egg in the bank, but he was Daryl's brother and if he wanted to, they would need to talk it out.

Daryl noticed how she said 'we' not 'you' and appreciated that she was in this with him. God, he was so lucky. "He ain't getting any money from us. He did this to himself, Princess and he's a grown-ass man so he can fix his own mess. I'm done. We're not giving him the money no matter what. Unless, he's looking to get clean, I want nothing to do with him."

Gabrielle couldn't help the tears that came to her eye. She was so proud of him for standing up to his older, very domineering brother.

"Why are you crying, Princess? What's wrong? You want me to give him the money?" Daryl was confused. He thought he was doing the right thing.

"No, we shouldn't give him the money, but I am just so proud of you. Making that decision had to be so hard as you both have so much history, but it's the right one." Gabrielle wiped away the tears and leaned over to kiss her husband. "I love you."

"Love you too, let's head up," Daryl told her standing up. He put out a hand and pulled her into his strong arms. He gave her a kiss, which held a promise of whole lot more, before they both went around the house checking locks and turning off lights. They headed upstairs arm in arm.

Merle watched the lights go off one by one in Daryl's house. He had followed them home, so now he knew where his little brother lived. "Damn nice house he has now. I knew he was holding out on me. The bitch must have money. She's gotta. Wonder what she's doin' slummin' with Daryl?" he growled in the dark of the car.

"They got the money, I know it." Merle convinced himself. "Now I just gotta find a way to get it." He sat in the car for a little while longer watching the house. A light came on upstairs and that gave him the location of the bedroom.

Merle felt sweat start to bead on his forehead, it was not just because it was hot out, but he needed to get high again. He looked back up at the bedroom window and saw the shadows of two people hugging each other. Not only was Daryl living well, he was getting laid regularly and that pissed Merle off even more. He went to turn the key in the ignition and couldn't. His hand was shaking so bad he had to wait for it to calm down before he could grab the key. He was becoming desperate for anything to make him feel better again. He was completely out and didn't have many options left.

He thought of a rundown house he knew where people would go to get high, maybe he could steal something from one of them. He finally got the car started and drove off cursing his traitorous brother. Fucking bastard was putting a piece of tail before his kin was all his drug addled brain could think of. Merle fully planned on coming back the next day and seeing exactly what Daryl had inside the house that Merle could take. He figured it was owed to him.

Except that didn't quite work out for Merle the way he wanted it to. Every day he would go back to the house so he could get inside, but there was always a car in the driveway. He was getting frustrated and his mixed up brain was blaming Gabrielle more and more for everything that was going wrong in his life.

Finally one morning, he drove by the house and saw that her car was gone. He was hungry and extremely on edge. He needed a pill, a snort or he'd even shoot up if he had to get high. Merle was that desperate. He parked on a side street and cut through some yards so he could look in the back door. It was a mud room with a fancy washer and dryer. Then he moved to a window that looked into the living room and saw a big screen TV and all types of fancy high end furniture. " _How the hell had Daryl managed to hook up with this bitch?_ " Merle thought not for the first time. They must be loaded and his baby brother was holding out on him _. Fuck him_.

Merle started trying all the windows and the back door, but everything was locked. Just when he was about to break the glass on the back door, he heard someone come out of the house next door, so he pretended he was looking inside.

"Can I help you?" said an older woman from next door.

"Looking for Daryl. I thought he said he was gonna be home," Merle lied. _God damn nosy neighbors_!

The woman got instantly suspicious. "Daryl works during the day. Who did you say you were?"?

"I'm his brother, Merle. I musta gotten his schedule mixed up, I'll … ah…come back later," Merle told her. The old hag was being too nosy and Merle knew he needed to get out of there.

"Gabrielle should be back soon. I can tell her you were here."

"No that's okay. Just looking for Daryl." Merle left as quickly as he could. That fucking meddlesome neighbor just screwed his day. He had to get money…any money to keep his old dealer, Stryper from killing him. A thousand should take the heat off him until he could convince Daryl to give him the rest of the money. Now he'd have to come back again. He was sure they had to have money in the house, and he needed it.

It only took another day for Merle to become absolutely desperate. He had narrowly escaped from the two thugs that Stryper had sent after him and he hadn't gotten high in almost two days. He was going through withdrawal which was making him shaky, paranoid and he felt like a truck hit him. He couldn't wait any longer, he had to hit Daryl's house for their cash.

Merle's screwed up head had him convinced that Daryl had all the money Merle needed inside his home. All he had to do was go inside the house and get it and he'd be in good shape. He could pay off what he owed and still be able to get some good shit from Stryper so he could feel good again. He needed to get high bad…really bad.

Merle pulled into his brother's driveway and parked. Daryl's motorcycle was gone, but the bitch's Honda was back. With all of the bravado of a desperate man, Merle walked up to the front door and knocked. He adjusted the gun he had tucked in the back of his pants and waited for someone to open the door.

Gabrielle was working upstairs in her office, when she heard the knock. It was a surprise as she wasn't expecting anyone, and Daryl had gone to work a couple hours ago. She had no idea who it could be until she opened the door and to her shock she saw Merle standing there.

"How's my favorite sister-in-law doing?" he leered at her while leaning against the door frame.

Gabrielle immediately felt a shiver go down her spine. This man was beyond creepy. He instantly made her very nervous and all he had done was greet her His clothes were filthy and the body odor was overwhelming. "I'm fine Merle. Daryl is at work, why don't you come back when he's home, okay?" She tried to close the door, but his worn boot shot out to stop it.

"Now is that any way to treat your new brother-in-law? I think it's time for us to get to know each other, Sweetcheeks," he told her. "We're family now."

This was Daryl's brother, he may make her uncomfortable, but he wouldn't dare hurt her. _Right_?

Merle pushed by a frightened Gabrielle and walked directly into the house. The minute he crossed the threshold, she knew this was wrong…so wrong She had to get him or herself out of there. "Merle, I'd love to get to know you better, but I am working now. I have a deadline I have to meet. Maybe you could come back when Daryl gets off work? I'll make dinner and we can all visit? How does that that sound?" she suggested with a forced smile. Why did Daryl have to take a Saturday shift? He liked the overtime, but if he hadn't he'd be here with her now.

Merle's eyes were quickly appraising everything he saw in the room. Yep, his little brother was holding out on him. They had money and he wanted it. What he was actually seeing was Gabrielle's furniture left over from the condo. They didn't live the way he was imagining they did.

He turned and smiled at Gabrielle. A chill ran down her spine and before she could bolt out the door, Merle reached behind him and drew the gun. Gabrielle was instantly filled with panic.

"No bitch that ain't gonna work. No more fuckin' waitin'! You got my brother by the balls. I need money and you gonna give it to me. Now!" he shouted at her. Merle was tired of getting jerked around by Daryl and his rich bitch wife. He figured his little brother owed him since he had taken care of him entire life, when in reality that couldn't be further from the truth. Merle did help his brother right after high school, but Daryl had been the one getting Merle out of jams and footing the bill for almost everything for most of the last twenty years. Daryl owed his older brother absolutely nothing, but Merle's drug addled head thought otherwise.

All Gabrielle could see was the gun pointed at her. The last thing she needed was for him to pull the trigger at this close range, she had to get him to calm down. "Okay Merle, take it easy. I'll get you whatever money I can, but please put the gun away," she said as calmly as she could manage.

"Naw, you ain't taking me seriously bitch. I mean business. You wouldn't let Daryl give me the money. He's always gave it to me before. You turned him against me!" Merle couldn't stand still. He was sweating, his skin was itching something fierce and his stomach was rolling. He needed to get high something bad and he needed money to do that.

"Merle, I would never turn him against you. We just don't have that type of money, we really don't. Daryl never even asked me, I swear. Let me get my purse, ok?" Gabrielle asked him. She was trying to use a calm voice to keep this from escalating. Inside she was a panicked mess.

Merle waved her on with his gun and Gabrielle walked over to the table where she had put her purse down. She pulled out her wallet as Merle watched. "I only have forty-eight dollars."

"Bull shit! Where do you keep your stash of money? Daryl always had money from his checks hidden, but I always found it. Where is the money?" he screamed waving the gun in the air.

"Merle, put the gun down, please," Gabrielle begged as she noticed his finger was on the trigger. "Please!"

Nothing was making sense to him anymore. He needed more money than she was giving him. A few dollars was insulting. What the hell was her problem? Why was she treating him like this, he was family damn it! His anger was making the shaking worse and if he was any decent state of mind he would have know not to have his finger in the trigger, but he did. As he started shouting about why she ruined his life and Daryl's, he was waving his arms all over the place, when the gun went off. Gabrielle screamed and everything changed in that instant.


	31. Chapter 31

**Chapter 31**

Gabrielle stood still with her eyes tightly closed waiting for the intense pain to come, but it never did. She popped them open and looked at herself. She wasn't bleeding thank god so he didn't shoot her, but then what did Merle shoot? Her eyes quickly caught his and she saw the surprise in them.

"I…I dd..didn't mean to do that," he stuttered.

Gabrielle looked around the room to see where the shot went. "Oh no," she sighed. "You shot his sixty inch TV that he saved for, Merle. He may even love that more than me," she said trying to regain control of the situation. She was hoping the humor would help.

"Fuck, I could have pawned that too," he muttered. "I still need money…what the hell is your name again?" Merle was having trouble concentrating. This wasn't going the way he wanted it to.

"Gabby, my name is Gabby. You want money Merle, let's go to the ATM and I'll pull it out for you. Then you can let me go, okay?" If giving him money would make him happy, then she would give him what she could. He was out of control, unreasonable and had a loaded gun, all that amounted to an extremely deadly combination. He was no longer simply Daryl's creepy brother, he was a very dangerous man.

Merle thought about that for a second. Should he take her to an ATM? What about the money in the house? "Don't Daryl have money here?"

"No. We put everything in the bank. I know he didn't used to, but we do that now. I have the only cash you have there. Let's go the ATM and I'll get you the money. Then you can leave me alone and we'll be square, okay?" Gabrielle wanted him to think that she was okay with this, and then maybe she'd make it out of this alive.

"Don't Daryl keep his money here? He never trusted a bank. I know he has money hidden, he just ain't telling you," Merle told her. No way Daryl put his money in a bank. Banks were for pussies. "Upstairs to the bedroom, I gotta look for it."

Merle followed Gabrielle up the stairs, even in his state of mind he was drooling at her shapely butt that was right in front of him. He could not resist grabbing her ass when they made it to the top. Gabrielle jumped away from him pushing his hand away. "Stop that! I'm your brother's wife and that was rude! Don't you dare touch me again or you won't get any money out of me! Understand?" she said getting in his face.

"C'mon, a little grab ass don't hurt no one,' he smirked.

"It does me! And you know Daryl would be furious if I told him. Do not touch me Merle!" Now Gabrielle dreaded going into the bedroom with him. She didn't think he'd assault her, but now she wasn't as sure.

Merle pushed her into the bedroom, so hard that she stumbled before she could catch herself from falling. Fear was starting to consume her and she did her best not to let it. If she panicked, she wouldn't stand any chance of getting out of this alive. She was praying that Daryl would come home early and save her. She had no idea what to expect from his crazy brother and the possibilities scared her to death.

Finding the money he needed became Merle's only goal. He didn't trust Gabrielle not to try to leave or knock him out, so he needed a way to control her. "You got a scarf or something?"

Gabrielle had no idea what he was going to do with a scarf, but she pulled one out of the drawer. Merle grabbed it from her and tied her hands in front of her. Then he had her kneel in the corner so he could keep an eye on her while he searched the room.

The heart in her chest was beating so fast it felt like it was about to explode. She couldn't believe that this was really happening. Here she was on her knees with her hands tied up while this lunatic robbed them. Merle was robbing his own family…the only family he had left. Gabby would give him anything he wanted, just to get rid of him.

She watched him pulling everything out of the drawers in a haphazard mess. Clothes were strewn all over the place as he kept searching for money and finding nothing. Shoes boxes started flying out of the closet and the room was quickly becoming a complete disaster.

Merle flipped the mattress and quickly scanned the box spring below. "There's nuthin' here. I haven't found a fuckin' quarter! Where's the money?"

Gabrielle saw a sick man staring at her. His eyes were completely bloodshot, he was deathly pale and he had this unnatural look about him. He looked so different from Daryl any way, it was a wonder they were brothers. Under normal circumstances, she would never have found Merle attractive at all, where he was drawn to Daryl right from the start.

"I told you, we don't keep extra money in the house. It all goes into the bank now. That's why I suggested the ATM. Remember?"

"I'm driving your car and no getting any stupid ideas. I still got the gun," he told her. Why couldn't he focus? Everything would be better if he could just think straight.

Gabrielle stood up walked over to him and put out her hands so he could untie them. "You don't want me to go outside like this, it would raise suspicions." Knowing she was right, Merle undid the knotted scarf he had her tied with and shoved it into his pocket. She gently put her hand on his arm. She felt the tremors underneath. "Merle, you are Daryl's brother and I'm his wife, there's no reason for the gun or all of this, I'm fully willing to help you. That's what family does, right?" She prayed he was going to fall for this.

He shook his head in agreement. "Yeah, I took care of Daryl, so now he can help me."

"Exactly," she told him. Gabrielle was doing her best to stay calm as they headed back downstairs and she handed him her keys and grabbed her purse. She purposefully didn't lock the front door, giving Daryl a hint that something may be wrong. Her car gone, the front door open, the bedroom a mess and especially the bullet hole in the TV should be enough to let him know something bad was happening. She just wished she had a way to tell him it was Merle, but everything was happening so fast that she didn't have time to do anything.

Merle was pushing her down the steps towards the car before she knew it. He shoved her roughly inside, before slamming the door on her and finally driving off.

Gabrielle was looking to withdraw the money and just get rid of him, and then she could fall apart. They ran into the first snag at the ATM. Merle stood next to her as she withdrew money. " _At least he's on camera_ ," she thought. The machine would only allow her to withdraw five hundred dollars. Gabrielle tried it over and over again, but finally realized that the card had a daily limit that could be withdrawn.

"It's only letting me withdraw five hundred, Merle. The card has a limit. I can't get more out until tomorrow," she told him handing him the money.

"I want more now," he demanded.

"I know, but the bankcard only allows me to take out five hundred a day. There isn't anything can do about that," she tried to explain.

"Let's go to the bank and get more."

Gabrielle took a deep breath. He wasn't getting it. "Merle, it's Saturday afternoon and the banks are closed. Another ATM withdrawal tomorrow is the best I can do. Won't the five hundred help you?"

"Not enough." It wasn't enough to pay off what he owed, but it was enough for him to get high with. Once he was feeling better, he could figure this out. He'd be able to think clearer. "We can get more tomorrow and the rest on Monday."

"Good idea," she told him. Hopefully, this was coming to an end if he would take her home, or maybe she'd give him the car. She could then call Daryl and fall apart.

"Get in," he demanded and faster than Gabrielle thought possible, they were back in the car driving away.

Gabrielle noticed he was not driving back towards her house. "Merle, the house is the other way. You can take me there and come back tomorrow or I'll give you my card, how about that?"

He didn't answer her, but kept driving and Gabrielle was starting to panic. "Merle, take me home. Daryl will be back soon and I told you I'll make dinner for y'all." He still kept driving which was becoming more and more erratic, as all he could think about now was getting high.

The damn bitch needed to shut up as her whining was driving him crazy. He had to find someone to buy from, but he couldn't remember who was around. Where could he go? Oh my god she was yelling at him now, why won't she just shut up!

Take me home!" Gabrielle shouted. Merle did the first thing he could think of to shut her up, he punched her in the face and Gabrielle fell against the door unconscious. Her long black hair was covering the attack on her pale skin.

" _Oh fuck_ ," he thought when he realized what he had done. " _At least she shut up_." He was going to find something…anything to get high with and then he would deal with her. First things first.

* * *

Daryl arrived home on his motorcycle and wondered why Gabrielle's car was gone. She hadn't mentioned anything about going out, but maybe she ran out to pick up something to eat. At least he hoped she did, he was starving.

He went to put his key in the door and it swung open. " _What the fuck_?" he said to himself. " _She would never leave the door open._ "

Daryl slowly walked inside his eyes scanning the room. All seemed oddly quiet, until he saw the TV. He ran over to it and put his hand on the screen. " _Shit, that's a bullet hole_!" he realized. He kept a handgun under the sofa that he didn't tell Gabrielle about. He quickly retrieved it and flicked off the safety.

Downstairs, he went from room to room and saw nothing disturbed. Daryl carefully made his way up the stairs with his gun in his hand. He saw the disaster that was left of the bedroom and could instantly tell someone was looking for something. The bad feeling he had just tripled. Then he went into Gabrielle's office. Her cup of coffee was cold and her computer was on. She never left it on when she stopped working. It was an expensive laptop and she was extremely cautious with it. She had left in a hurry.

What sent a chill throughout him was that she was nowhere to be found. She would have texted him if an emergency had come up. Even though the bedroom scared him, the worst thing was the bullet hole in the TV. Something bad had gone down here and all he knew was that his wife was missing.

Daryl did the only thing he could think of and that was to call Rick. Within fifteen minutes both he and Michonne were at the house. The car had barely stopped before Michonne was running inside. Daryl had been doing nothing but trying to figure what the hell had happened. His hair was a mess from him running his fingers through it and he had smoked at least four cigarettes in that short period of time. He was trying not to panic, when that's all he could think of doing.

"Alright," Rick said. "Start at the beginning and leave nothing out."

He had been going over everything in his head multiple times, but this time he told it to his best friend who was a deputy sheriff. Daryl started with him coming home to see her car gone and finally finding her computer on. They all knew the scariest piece of evidence was the bullet in the TV.

"Nothing else looks out of place or is missing?" Rick asked.

"Only the bedroom was trashed and I can't tell if anything is gone. Gabrielle is what is missing! Damn it Rick, what are we gonna do?" Daryl shouted.

Michonne placed a hand on his arm trying to calm Daryl. She was a mess inside too, but she knew she could not fall apart. They all needed level heads to find Gabby. "Daryl, between you and Rick, you will figure this out. Is there any way you can track her?"

Daryl quickly looked up. "Track her!" Let me see if she left any clues where she puts her car. Rick can you track her cell?"

Rick nodded and got on his phone to call the station. Daryl ran outside too check the ground where Gabrielle would always park her car with Michonne hot on his heels.

The tracking he learned as kid and used most of his adult like, it all came back to him in an instant. He knew what he saw every day, but what was different? Two sets of footprints were in the dirt...one bigger and heavier than the other. There was a man here with her and he drove, Gabrielle was in the passenger side. Daryl was pointing this out to Michonne when he heard his name called.

He looked up and saw his neighbor Mrs. Stanton waving at him. "Fuck, I don't have the time for this shit," he growled.

"Maybe she saw Gabby, Daryl ask her?" Michonne suggested.

Fuck, he should have thought of that. "Hey, Mrs. Stanton. Did you see Gabrielle today? She ain't home and I wondering where she is."

"Do you have a brother? Merle?" the older woman asked.

"Yeah, I do, why?"

"Well yesterday I saw a strange man looking in your windows and back door, so I asked him what he was doing. He said he was looking for you and was your brother, Merle. It all seemed very odd to me, but he said that he'd catch up with you another time. I told him Gabrielle should be home soon, but he ran off. Something wasn't right with him, I just knew that," she told him.

"What about today?"

"I saw him push Gabrielle into the car and he drove off. She seemed more mad than upset, so I thought it was alright. Is she okay, Daryl?" the older woman was wringing her hand in worry.

Merle. It was his God damn drug addicted brother that took Gabrielle. He was after the money that Daryl had told him he couldn't have, that had to be it. "How long ago did you see them Mrs. S?" Daryl was trying to be calm, when all he wanted to do was kill his brother.

"It was right before Lillian and I went to the store, so that was around eleven thirty." Daryl looked at his watch. It was after four o'clock. If Gabrielle was going to get him money from the bank or an ATM, they should have been long back by now. Something had gone wrong.

"Daryl is everything alright?" Mrs. Stanton asked him again.

Daryl looked at Michonne who instantly understood. She went over to talk to the woman so Daryl could go tell Rick what they learned. With what felt like a bowling ball in the pit of his stomach, Daryl ran inside, flew past Rick and went upstairs to Gabrielle's laptop. She had shown him how to log onto their banking account to keep an eye on their balance.

He clicked on the shortcut to the bank, but forgot the password. "Fuck! Fuck! Think Dixon!" he yelled at himself. Then it suddenly came back to him. He typed in 'bikerbitch1' and their account opened up. He clicked the checking account and there it was a five hundred dollar withdrawal from an ATM at a gas station down the road. It was definitely his brother.

Daryl ran downstairs just as Rick as was hanging up his cell. "No signal. It must be off. It'll take a little while to triangulate her last location. What did you find out?"

"That my fuckin' brother has kidnapped my wife."


	32. Chapter 32

**Chapter 32**

Rick was shocked. He quickly looked from Daryl to Michonne who was nodding her head in agreement. "How? Why? Why would Merle do that?" Rick had never liked Daryl's brother and he knew the feeling was mutual. Merle preferred to live in the gutter and bring Daryl down with him. He knew that his friend had made many questionable choices over the years and as long as Rick didn't catch them doing anything illegal, he could turn blind eye. Now that Merle was out of Daryl's life, his friend was a different man.

Daryl had changed his life, showing his true character and that proved how much Merle had dragged him down all those years. Daryl had always been a good friend to him and in reality he was more of a a brother than friend. Rick was prepared to do anything he had to help him find Gabrielle.

"To make a long story short, remember that night we ate at the Mexican place and I came back from having a smoke?"

"Yep, you were out of sorts when you got back," Rick told him.

"It was Merle. Don't know how he found me, but he approached me outside the restaurant while I was smokin'. He needed money, like three grand and I told him no way. He has no reason to think I'd have that type of cash. I never ever had ten bucks to spare and I know he don't know about the money I got from your folks." Daryl explained. Leave it to Merle to have to push this. Daryl had no idea why he would take Gabrielle to help him and not ask Daryl again. Was he that desperate? If he hurt a hair on her head, brother or no brother Daryl would kill him.

"What the hell does he need three thousand dollars for?" asked Michonne.

Rick caught Daryl's eyes. He knew without even asking. Michonne didn't know as much about Merle as Rick did. "Drugs?"

"Drugs. He was selling for a guy and being the asshole that he is, he used some of the dope and kept the cash. Now the dealer is supposedly after him. I can't believe he had the balls to take Gabrielle, he is so fuckin' stupid!" Daryl told them in complete frustration. "I checked the bank account. There was an ATM withdrawal of five hundred today. He musta made Gabrielle take that out."

"Why not more or don't you guys have it?" asked Michonne.

"We didn't have much more than that in the checking account, but we gotta limit on the card that we can withdraw. Damn, that's what musta happened and it pissed him off. Damn it Merle!"

Michonne looked from her husband the deputy sheriff to her distraught friend. "What do we do next?"

"Figure out where he took her?" said Rick. "Any ideas Daryl?"

"He's living outta his car he told me. Where the hell would he have taken her?" Daryl paced back and forth trying to wrack his brain on where they could be. Gabrielle must be so frightened. Merle had to have snapped for him to have both brought a gun with him and have fired a shot inside the house. There wasn't any sign of blood so hopefully that meant that Gabrielle was okay. If anything happened to her, he would never forgive himself.

"His cell! He called me a few weeks back and I ignored him. Let me try calling him, so help me God if he hurts her, I'm gonna fuckin' kill him!"

Before Daryl could call Merle, Rick had him stop. "Hold on a second. We need a plan. If you go off halfcocked on him, it's gonna backfire. His state of mind has to be fucked up, so you need to come off easy going and agree to whatever he wants. We just need to find them, and then we do what we need to do, understand Daryl?"

Rick knew he should get the department involved, but time was of the essence and Daryl was their best shot at finding Gabrielle. He didn't like it, but knew for his friend…his brother; they had to try it this way. If this backfired, he could lose his job, but it was a chance he was prepared to take.

Daryl was furious at his brother and he didn't know if he could sound normal on the phone when he wanted to strangle him. "If he wants me to bring him money and I agree, where the hell am I gonna get it, even if it's to fake him out? My bank account is tapped out."

"From me," Michonne said calmly. "I have yesterday's cash receipts, money from today and the extra cash I keep on hand to make change. We can use that." She could see that Daryl was about to refuse. "No do not say no, this is non-negotiable. She is my best friend and your wife. We are using my money, Daryl!"

As much as he didn't want to put her money as risk, Daryl knew he didn't have any other choice. This was a Saturday and everything was closed. His stern look that could scare most anyone, softened with his realization that he had to accept Michonne offer. "Thanks Michonne. 'preciate it."

Daryl dialed his brother and after a few rings it went to voice mail. Daryl left him a message, "Hey bro. I need ya to call me back. I know you got Gabrielle with ya. I got the money you wanted. Just tell me were and I'll bring it to ya. No problems, man. Just call me, okay?"

Rick nodded his head at his friend. "That was good. Real good." Then he turned to his wife, "Hon, why don't you go get the cash from the store and unless you hear from me, come back here. Daryl and I will wait here for Merle to call him back."

Michonne quickly left to get the money after hugging both of her favorite men. Daryl paced back and forth non-stop waiting for something to happen. He was smoking one cigarette after another. Rick felt bad for his friend. This was a dangerous situation caused by Daryl's brother that made no sense. "You know when Gabby gets back, she's gonna kick your ass for smokin' in the house. Man, you need to take it easy, we'll get her back. I promise you."

Daryl would welcome Gabrielle yelling at him for smoking in the house. He'd do whatever he had to do to make it up to her, if he could just get her back. What the hell was his brother thinking? "You promise not to put me in cuffs when I kill him?"

"I'll supply the shovel so we can bury the body," Rick told him.

Daryl looked at his friend and saw that he was completely serious. That's the man he wanted and needed as family, not the strung out loser Merle was. "Thanks, man."

About thirty minutes later Daryl's cell phone rang. He looked at the caller ID and it was his brother. "It's him!"

"Don't get angry," Rick instructed him. "Be cool."

Daryl hit the button to answer the call. "Yo bro, what the fuck?"

Rick gave him a look that said ' _what are you doing_?' and Daryl gave him one back that said ' _this is normal for me_.'

"Merle, ya there? What's going on bro?"

Merle finally answered him, "Hey little brother, we got a problem."

Gabrielle watched Merle talk to Daryl on his phone and just knowing that they were in contact helped to relieve some of her stress. The situation with Merle had gone from bad to worse faster than she ever thought possible. Apparently, Merle had knocked her out in the car. She didn't even see that coming. She woke up with a swollen eye, an aching head and in a strange rundown shack. She was tied to an old wooden chair. That he was capable of this type of violence against her scared her to death.

It just showed how out of control Merle was. Not only had he kidnapped his brother's wife, but he physically assaulted her too. Now it was a couple of hours later and her eye was swollen shut. She was tired, hungry and in pain, but most of all she was afraid.

At least Merle was calmer now and almost strangely regretful. She knew he was high as she had watched him snort something, but he was easier to deal with too. Now all she needed was Daryl to come get her and take her home. Gabrielle was afraid that once he saw what Merle had done to her face he would go crazy on his brother. She knew it was the withdrawal he had been going through that threw him over the edge. While she didn't know his personality at all, he was much easier to reason with now.

"Daryl, everything got out of control and I didn't intend for this to happen, but I need the money. I'm dead without it," Merle explained.

"I get it bro, I got the money for ya. Just tell me where to bring it and it's yours. I just want Gabrielle back. Is she okay? Can I talk to her?" Daryl asked. He had already figured out that his brother was high, and he most likely used the money he had gotten from Gabrielle to make the buy.

The mess he had left in the bedroom and the bullet hole in the TV was from a desperate crazed man, he may still be desperate, but he sounded okay on the phone.

"Gabby said that you couldn't get any more money. I knew she was lying," Merle growled.

"Bro, no that ain't it. She ahh…she…didn't know about the money. You know how I feel about banks, so I kept a stash of money from her. I'll bring it right over, where you at?" Daryl knew that story he had just come up with on the fly Merle would believe. It was totally plausible and completely untrue at the same time. Daryl kept nothing was Gabrielle.

"We're at the old man's shack. Can you stop off and pick me up a few burgers too? I ain't ate in a while," Merle asked. Daryl had him completely snowed that everything was fine.

Daryl closed his eyes in frustration. How could Merle think that everything was just going to be okay even though that's what Daryl was trying to convince him. "No problem. Hey can I talk to Gabrielle? Just for a second." He was praying that Merle would let him talk to her.

"Make it quick." Merle walked over to where Gabrielle was sitting on a decrepit chair and held the phone next to her ear. He didn't tell Daryl that he had her hands tied up again. "Talk to Daryl."

"Daryl?"

"Princess, are you okay? I am so sorry," he said trying to keep his voice calm.

"I'm fine. Merle and I are getting to know each other," she said flashing Merle a smile "Are you coming to get me soon?" she added in a soft voice.

"On my way. Hold on," he told her.

Merle pulled the phone away from her before she could tell him she loved him. "You comin'?" he asked.

Daryl saw Michonne pull into the driveway and knew he was ready to go. "Heading out when I hang up, I'll be there as soon as I can. And Merle?"

"Yeah, little brother?"

"You better be taking good care of her, she's real important to me. Got that?" If his brother had harmed one single hair on her gorgeous head, Daryl was going to kill him. Once he had Gabrielle safely back, then all bets were off with his brother.

Merle looked at Gabrielle's swollen face and knew he had fucked up...badly. Daryl would kill him for hurting his wife. Why had he done that? He never should have taken her with him. What the fuck was he thinking? He looked around at the rundown shack that his old man had called home. He had been nothing but a hateful, abusive drunk and Merle did a dance they day he heard he had died. Now he realized he was no better. He had turned into his old man, but instead of drinking himself into oblivion, he did drugs. His addiction caused him to do this and he was fucked.

He looked over at Gabrielle who was staring at him. Her left eye swollen shut and her face showed severe bruising, and it was his entire fault. He had never hit a woman before today. The need for the damn drugs fucked him up so bad that he hit his sister-in-law like he'd hit a man. That's when Merle realized how far he had fallen and that he needed help. He was simply a piece of shit and just as bad as his old man.

"Got it, bro. Daryl?"

"Yeah?"

"You've done good for yourself. I'm proud of ya," Merle told him before hanging up.

Daryl looked at his phone in complete confusion. That was so out of character for Merle to say that it made Daryl real nervous. He knew he needed to get to the shack immediately. "Got the money?" he asked Michonne.

"Yes, but what just happened? You're as white as a ghost," she asked him.

"I'm fine," he told her had reached for the bag that she held, but Michonne pulled it away. "Rick?"

Rick saw the change in Daryl too. He went from being angry to afraid. Daryl had a face that showed every single emotion instantly. "What did he say, Daryl? Did he threaten her? Or you?"

"No just the opposite. He said that I had done well for myself and he was proud of me. And you know Merle don't say shit like that ever. I gotta get there now, man."

Rick told him to go and Daryl took the bag of money from Michonne outstretched hand flew out the door grabbing his backpack on the way out. A handle of a gun was clearly visible coming out of the back of his pants. He was stuffing the bag of money in the pack as he ran for his bike. Gravel flew from the back tire as he accelerated down of the driveway and out of sight.

"What do we do?" asked Michonne looking at her worried husband. Gabby had to be alright.

"We do nothing, cause you're staying here and I'm following Daryl. I know where his father used to live and I'll be his back up," Rick told her while he checked the rounds in his gun.

"We're not having this argument now, Rick. I'm coming with you and that's final. You know I can shoot and it'll make three against one. Gabby may need me, I'm afraid what he may have done to her and she may not turn to Daryl." Michonne impatient look told him they were wasting valuable time and they were.

Rick made the split second decision to let her come and prayed that he wouldn't live to regret it. He had taught his wife how to shoot and she was subsequently very good with a gun. "Fine, but stay here a second." He ran upstairs to where he knew Daryl kept his guns and grabbed both a rifle and hand gun, plus ammunition before heading back downstairs. "Let's go!" he told her and they ran for the car.

While Rick drove as fast as he dared to the wooded area where the shack was, Michonne was in the backseat loading ammunition into the firepower they took from Daryl. One they got to the road that led to the shack, they would go in on foot. Daryl had a good head start on them, but Rick hoped everything would end peacefully. Merle was the wild card and even knowing him all these years, Merle was as unpredictable as they came.

Michonne climbed into the front seat and prayed the entire way there that Gabby was okay. Daryl may never recover if anything happened to her. None of them would ever be the same.


	33. Chapter 33

**Chapter 33**

Daryl slowly made the turn down the overgrown dirt road that lead to his father's abandoned shack. He felt sweat start to bead on his forehead and his heart beat wildly in his chest as he made his way down the narrow lane. His father, a broken alcoholic, had died alone in this rundown shack. Daryl had not seen him since that night they had their last big fight and he ended up over that the Grimes' house. Over twenty years later, just thinking about the man still made him anxious and angry.

This was not the house that he lived in as a teenager, but he knew it was going to be damned well close enough. When this was over he was going to burn it to the ground. Now he just had to deal with his brother and get Gabrielle back. Once she was safe, all bets were off with Merle. No matter what happened between them, Daryl would never forgive him for what he had done.

The bike cruised slowly down the pot hole filled road. If he went fast, he would end up being tossed from his bike and that would just make the situation even worse. Finally the shack came into view and he quickly noticed two things, it was smaller than he thought and there was no car here. Where was Gabrielle's Accord?

The small yard was filled with rusted pieces of junk. His old man was constantly bringing shit home to fix and sell that he found or even possibly even stole. What he did not end up using, always ended up in the yard. It had always embarrassed Daryl that his home always looked like a trash heap. This place was no better.

He turned off the bike and wondered why Merle didn't greet him. Something didn't feel right, so he took the gun out of the back of his pants and kept is ready in his hand. The windows had planks across them, but they weren't enough to cover the whole opening. Daryl could see the holes in the roof that Merle had talked about and knew this place was inhabitable. It would not take much too simply turn it into a big pile of nothing.

His acute hearing picked up the sound of people approaching. They were quiet, but he was a superb tracker and hunter. Nothing got by him. It was the only thing his father ever did for him was to teach him how to survive off the land. During many lean years he and Merle had food to eat because they had bagged a deer or another animal. They ate everything from deer, opossum, rabbit and even squirrel.

He ducked behind a rusted small tractor to see who was approaching. The footsteps stopped and he heard two short whistles. It was Rick. Daryl still didn't know if Merle and Gabrielle were inside the house, but he had to assume that they were. He walked so that Rick could see him and motioned for him to remain where he was. He wanted to go in alone.

Daryl walked up to the house and tried to look inside through the window but could not really see anything. "Merle, you there? It's me. I got the money, if you ain't coming out, I'm comin' in. Okay?" Daryl called out. There was no response from inside.

"I'm comin' in so don't fuckin' shoot me, bro."

While he was trying to talk to Merle, he had walked up to the decrepit old door. He turned the handle and found it locked. That was easily solved with a quick kick to the door and it flew open. Daryl went inside praying the entire time. If he found her body, it would absolutely crush him.

The swinging motion of the door stirred up the dust and dirt that was all over the room. The air was filled with small swirls of debris and Daryl had to cover his mouth in order not to choke on it. It took a moment for his eyes to adjust while he scanned the room franticly for Gabrielle and his brother. Then he saw her. His wife was tied to chair, with a gag across her mouth, but she was alive. He ran to her as saw there were tears were streaming down her dirty face, leaving wet streaks down her cheeks.

The first thing he did was undo the gag so she could talk. "Are you alright?" he asked her. That's when he noticed her face. Her long disheveled hair had initially covered up the damage left from Merle's fist. Now that Daryl could see her, it took his breath away. Her left eye was swollen shut and that entire side of her face was horribly bruised.

"I'm okay. You're here now…I'm okay," she said quietly her voice hoarse from being thirsty.

Daryl didn't say anything as he untied her from the chair. Anger, hate and loathing poured off of him in waves as he realized what his brother had done. Instead of looking relieved that Gabrielle was alright, his face was stone cold. This was unforgivable.

"Where is he?" he growled. He was looking around the small room as he released Gabrielle from her bindings. "Where the fuck is he?"

Gabrielle stood up from the chair, her muscles tight from being confined for hours. She wrapped her arms around Daryl and felt his arm come around her. "He's gone. Put the gun down and hold me please. Just hold me."

He tucked the gun in the back of his pants again and held on tightly to his wife. The thought that he could have lost her so senselessly overwhelmed him. "I'm so sorry, Princess. I'm so damn sorry he did this. It's all my fault."

Gab took his face between her hands. "It's no one's fault but Merle's. He made the choices he did all on his own. This is not your fault at all. But I am okay, I really am. I was scared to death, but I'm okay."

"Oh thank God," came from the doorway. They both looked over and saw Rick and Michonne standing there with weapons in their hands. Michonne ran in the room and she pulled Gabrielle into a bear hug. Both women immediately started to cry.

"Where is he?" Rick asked Daryl. His trained eyes surveyed the room before they came back to meet Daryl's.

""No idea. I was about to see what Gabrielle knows. Did you see what he did to her? He's so fuckin' dead."

"I don't think he meant to hurt me, Daryl," Gabrielle said as she and Michonne joined their men. "Everything just got out of control." She put her hand on his arm, "Can we get out of here? I just want to go home."

"Sure Princess, but you have to tell us what happened and… I need to know where he is," Daryl said sternly.

Gabrielle could feel herself starting to crash. "Let's just go home, please. I'll tell y'all everything after I get home. Okay?"

Rick looked at his wife, then at Gabrielle. "Sorry Gabby, but I gotta ask this… did Merle…did he rape you?" Times like this he hated being a cop.

"No he didn't. I swear he didn't, okay?" she told them. "Does anyone have any water?"

Michonne reached into her shoulder bag that held their extra ammunition and a bottle of water, and handed it to Gabrielle. She practically downed the entire thing.

As they walked out of the house, Daryl looked at the guns that Rick and Michonne had. "Are those my guns?"

"Yep. Didn't have time to go back and get mine, so we took yours," Rick told him.

"Glad you did."

"All these guns are yours, Daryl?" Gabrielle asked.

Rick and Daryl looked at each other and smiled. "You never looked in the closet in your office have you?" said Daryl with is arm around his wife.

"Not really. I mean I put your clothes away. That's all in your closet?"

"And then some. I think you're better off not knowing," he told her with a smile. The three guns they had from his stash were only a few of the guns that Daryl owned. Some legally attained others not. Rick always looked the other way. It was the way people lived down there.

They were all standing next to Daryl's motorcycle. "Where's your car, Princess?" Daryl asked.

"Merle has it."

"Want me to put out an APB on it? Rick asked.

"No. Not yet. Can we just go home and I'll explain everything?" Gabrielle asked again. She was emotionally drained and just wanted to be on her sofa lying in Daryl's arms. Plus an ice pack for her face would help tremendously.

"I'll follow you three back on my bike, why don't y'all get going. I'll be right behind ya." Daryl said. The sooner they got home, the sooner he'd find out what the hell had happened with his psycho brother

"I want to go with you," Gabrielle told him.

"Princess, as much as I don't want you outta my sight, you shouldn't be hanging onto me on the bike. You could have a concussion and I would feel better if you were safe in the car. Okay?"

Even though she knew Daryl was right, she still wanted to go with him. She pouted at him which earned her a chuckle from her husband. "The pout's not gonna work this time, Princess. You need to go with Rick and Michonne. I'll be right behind you. I promise. I love you."

"He's right, Gabby. Come with us and we'll all be back in no time," Michonne said agreeing with Daryl.

"Alright," she agreed turning to Daryl. "I love you too. I never doubted that you wouldn't find me. I knew that the whole time." Gabrielle leaned into her husband and kissed him gently in the lips. Even her mouth was sore from the punch Merle had hit her with.

The kiss was brief and even though Daryl wanted to wrap her in his arms and not let her go, this was neither the time nor place to do that. He needed to get her home first. As he put his helmet on, he watched the three most important people in his life walk away from him and down the narrow dirt road towards where Rick left their car. Gabrielle and Michonne were arm in arm and there was no one he trusted more with her welfare than he did Rick.

He wanted answers now, but knew that he would have to wait until he got home to get them. What had his fucking brother been thinking? Did he really think that he could get away with this? All the way home, Daryl planned and plotted his revenge on his brother. He could not decide whether he wanted to beat the living shit out of him or send him to jail for kidnapping and assault. Maybe he could find a way to do both. Either way he was finished with his brother. There was nothing Merle could do to make up for what he did to Gabrielle. Once again Daryl wondered why he was cursed with such a fucked up family.


	34. Chapter 34

**Chapter 34**

Michonne convinced Gabrielle to take a shower before they all sat down to talk. It was a surprise to everyone but her, that when they got back to the house, her car was in the driveway. Daryl and Rick fully expected to find Merle in the house, so they would not let the women inside until they swept it. There was no sign of Daryl's brother what so ever.

While Daryl waited for the women to join the men, he and Rick had a beer and sat in silence in the living room. They were each lost in thought over this crazy stressful day. Rick knew he should file an official report on this, but he wanted to see what Daryl thought.

Meanwhile, Daryl was so confused on what was going on. Why did Merle return Gabrielle's car? It was so in his nature to steal it, and that he had brought it back to their house was shocking. Where the hell was his pain in the ass brother?

Soft footsteps coming down the stairs announced the girls' arrival. Daryl and Rick instantly stood up as they entered the room. Gabrielle walked over to her husband and he enveloped her in his strong arms, before making her sit down with him on the sofa.

Michonne had veered off into the kitchen and came back with two glasses of white wine and a bag of frozen vegetables. She handed a glass and the frozen bag to Gabrielle before sitting in a chair near Rick. The room was heavy with the silence. Gabrielle held the frozen vegetable bag to her swollen face.

She had her black wavy hair pulled back into a messy ponytail and the damage to her face was clearly evident. Daryl's hands clenched into fists at the sight of his beautiful wife's face. Her left eye was grotesquely swollen shut. Mixtures of blues and purples marred her perfect skin from her eye to her lips. And those luscious lips that he could kiss all day long were swollen too. Until she healed, Daryl would treat her like a porcelain doll. How could Merle have done this to her?

Finally, Gabrielle spoke, "It was the drugs that did it to him. He wasn't thinking straight because he was in really bad withdrawal. He has a really big problem, Daryl. And add to that he basically stole money from a dealer and they are actively looking to kill him, led to Merle making every bad decision he could." She took a drink from her wineglass. "He was sure we had money here and wouldn't believe that we didn't."

"Yeah, I never used a bank until we got together, so he was used to me having money around, but I never woulda had the type of cash he was looking for. That's crazy," Daryl told her.

"For some reason he thought we were rolling in the cash, I think he was desperate to see what he wanted to see."

"How did the TV get shot?" Daryl asked. He was so grateful that Gabrielle was alright, but why of all things did Merle have to shoot his beloved TV.

"He was losing it and I could see he was shaking and sweating cause the withdrawal was hitting him hard. He was getting madder because we didn't have the money and his finger was on the trigger and it just went off. I was lucky…very lucky," Gabrielle explained. She snuggled more into Daryl's side. He always made her feel safe.

Daryl rolled his eyes. "So it was just dumb luck that he hit my TV?"

"Well it is kind of big," Michonne said with a smirk.

"Make that was," laughed Rick. He then turned back to Gabrielle, "What happened next?"

Gabrielle took the frozen bag off her face to continue. "We went to the closest ATM I could think of, but I could only get out five hundred and he wasn't happy. I wanted to give him my card and be done with him, but he wouldn't listen to me and shoved me in the car. When he took off the opposite way from home, I started to yell at him and that's when he hit me. I woke up in the shack and tied to a chair." She paused to take another sip of wine and saw Michonne give her an encouraging smile. Gabrielle was grateful that she had such good trustworthy friends.

"I'm gonna kill Merle when I see him. Can't believe he hit you like that! That prick is so fuckin' dead," Daryl said in a low deadly tone.

Gabrielle put a hand on Daryl's thigh. "I don't think he meant to hurt me. Apparently he bought some drugs with the money we got and once he got high, strangely enough I could talk to him. He knew that you'd be furious at him. He kept saying that he didn't understand you. You had never had a girlfriend before and now you were suddenly married. He was confused and I think jealous. But, when you called him, I saw remorse. He knew he had fucked up badly. Once you knew where I was, he took off in my car. Said he would drop it back here as his car was parked right around the corner. He told me he was sorry for what he did and you were a lucky man." She turned to look right at Daryl, "He said to tell you he's out of our lives for good. He's sorry that he fucked up so badly."

"He's not coming back?" Rick asked.

"That's what he said."

Daryl sat there quietly as Rick asked Gabrielle a few more questions. Today was the worst day in his life. This was even harder than when his father beat his back so bad that he left the scars he was cursed to have for the rest of his life. He knew he could handle that, but what he couldn't handle today was knowing that Gabrielle had been in such severe danger. She could have died. His brother may have realized how badly he screwed up, but Daryl would never forgive him.

He never felt for anyone else what he felt for Gabrielle. She gave him a reason to breathe. He wanted to be a better person because of her and he couldn't imagine not coming home to her each night. The only people that ever had shown him any type of love was The Grimes'. This was another whole different type of all-consuming love that he never thought possible. He had a nice place to live for the first time in years, a gorgeous wife to come home to and money in the bank. This was how normal people lived and he loved it. This was the life he had always wanted, but never knew.

"Daryl? Daryl?" Rick called out.

"Sorry…what was it?" he asked. His mind had wandered for a moment.

"What do you want to do about Merle? Gabrielle doesn't want to press charges, but what about you?"

He really didn't want to put his brother in jail, but he had stolen from them, and kidnapped and hurt his wife. "You sure, Princess? He deserves to go to jail for what he did you? I have no problem pressing charges."

"No Daryl, I don't. He needs rehab, not jail. I suggested he look into that before he took off. He knows he's in the gutter and there's no place left to go."

"I don't know. You don't know him like me and Rick. He's always been in trouble, even when he wasn't doing drugs. He wants everything the easy way and doesn't want to work for anything. Plus, he's so damn obnoxious and never knows when to shut his mouth. He's been this way his whole damn life," Daryl told her.

"Being an ass is not grounds to arrest anyone," Gabrielle retorted. She was tired and her face hurt. She was done dealing with this. Daryl and Rick were going to have to drop it.

"No, but kidnapping and assaulting you is!" Daryl yelled.

Gabrielle stood up and put her wineglass down on to the table. She dropped the partially frozen bad of vegetables in Daryl's lap. "What the hell?" he exclaimed.

"For the last time, I'm not pressing charges. Now, I'm going upstairs and to take a nap. I'm done talking about this and I'm exhausted. Michonne…Rick, thank you for coming to my rescue. I'm lucky to have such good friends as you both are. "Then she turned to Daryl. "I couldn't want a better or more protective husband than you, but I just can't do this anymore today. Okay?"

Daryl nodded that he understood and watched his Gabrielle hug Michonne before she turned to head upstairs. She stopped and turned back to her husband. "And Daryl?"

"Yeah? 

"No more smoking in my house. It stinks in here."

"Yes, ma'am," he told her. Gabrielle then continued upstairs the closing of the door was the last they heard.

Daryl dropped his head into his hands. This was the first time since they started living together that he didn't quite know what to do with her. He must have had such a lost look on his face that suddenly Michonne got up and sat next to him. She took his hand in hers.

"She went through a traumatic experience today so you going to need to give her some time and space. If she doesn't want to press charge, then don't push her. Gabby's strong Daryl, she'll bounce back, just give her time." She kissed her old friend on his scruffy cheek and nodded to her husband. It was time to go. "I'll call tomorrow," she said as they all stood up.

Michonne hugged Daryl and noticed how strongly he hugged her back. "Thank you," he whispered in her ear.

"You know I'd do anything for you, right?' she whispered back.

"Yep. I do. Same thing here. Anything you need, you got it."

Michonne slipped out of his arms and stepped out of the way so Rick and Daryl could say their goodbyes. A handshake was pulled into a hug that guys did. "Thanks, man. I owe ya big time."

"It's what family does. I will always have your back," Rick told him.

"Same here."

Daryl closed the door behind his friends and watched them drive away. All he wanted to do was hold Gabrielle. There was never another woman in his life that he wanted to just wrap his arms around and take her pain away. She had changed him so much, without even trying.

He called his brother a vile name under his breath as he took last look at his ruined TV. He'd have to junk that tomorrow. Even though it was early, he made sure the house was locked up tight and the lights were off, before he headed upstairs. He put the guns away before he opened the door to their bedroom. He could see that Gabrielle was under the covers so he took everything off except for his boxer briefs and slide in next to her. Daryl thought she was asleep until he realized that she was quietly crying.

"Come're Princess. It's okay. I gotcha now, it's okay," he whispered softly.

Gabrielle rolled over so she faced him and felt his protective arms wrap around her. That was when her slow tears turned into heartbreaking sobs. Daryl knew it was something she had to get out of her system so he just held onto her as she cried into the crook of his neck. He knew that she just needed his support and love right now, and he had an abundance of that to give her.

She was alright, even though today was very traumatic. This was the crash he had been expecting to hit her. Daryl was glad that he could be there to help her through this.

As Gabrielle sobbed in Daryl's arms she never felt safer. She had tried to stay strong today, but she just couldn't do it any longer. She had been scared to death and even though she was finally safe at home, the memories of today kept playing back in her mind. She never wanted to go through a day like today ever again. Merle had promised her he was going to stay away, that Daryl deserved this new life he had and didn't need him screwing it up.

The tears finally slowed, but he never loosened his hold in her. He was prepared to hang onto her until she was ready for him to let go. "Oh lord, I cried all over you and the pillow case. Both of you are soaking wet, I'm sorry," she apologized still sniffling a little.

"No big deal, Princess, I dry off easily and we just change the pillow case. Do you feel better?" he asked her.

"I do, but will you do me a favor?"

"Anything."

"Get me some ibuprofen and an ice pack. My face is hurting."

Daryl released her hold on her and sat up. He dropped a gentle kiss on her slightly swollen lips before telling her he'd be right back. He retrieved the medication from the bathroom first and made sure she took a couple, before heading downstairs to get the ice.

In the dark peacefulness of the kitchen was where he let himself fall apart. He had to be strong for Gabrielle, but he had never felt so much fear he did today. Luckily, everything turned out okay, but he thought of losing her had his own tears streaming down his face. Daryl was not a man that let his emotions show. The last time he cried was when Rick told him his father had unexpectantly passed away. Mr. Grimes was more of a father to him than his old man ever was. He practically celebrated when he heard his father was found dead in that old shack, but he cried when he heard about Rick's dad. He owed his life to both Mr. and Mrs. G and he never forgot it.

Now he cried for the pain Gabrielle had suffered at the hands of his own brother. Her beautiful face would heal and so would she, but this would leave a dark dangerous space inside of him. Merle better never come back, or one of them would end up dead.

Daryl pulled himself together and washed his face at the kitchen sink. Their bedroom was dark, so hopefully Gabrielle would not realize that he had lost it. His male pride did not want him to look weak in front of her. She had to see him being strong. He pulled another bag of frozen vegetable out of the freezer and headed upstairs. His wife needed him and that was all that mattered. He would deal with his own problems later. Gabrielle came first…she always would.

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 _ **A/N - Thank you for all of the reads! I love all of teh comments/reviews. Thanks to - Miss October 13 (you never fail to leave me a comment), Biasoul (new fan! Thanks for reading), WalkingAddiction (love how much you love my writing), snuggy29 (new fan - thanks for reading!), Enjoi88 (thank you as always for your faithful reading), EastDenise (Thanks you've been with me from the start), jeanf (thanks for alwasy commenting and Mizu-shan (happy that you enjoy the story.)**_

 _ **Sad news is that this had only 38 chapters total plus a short epilogue. It's coming to a close soon. I'm still writing my next story, so this is the first time i won't have another new one to immediately start. If you like my stories, please follow me so you know when I post my new one. It's a sequel to Restless.**_

 _ **Thank you everyone!**_

 _ **Walker Witch**_


	35. Chapter 35

**Chapter 35**

A week went by and Gabrielle's face now only showed some light bruising in colors of muted yellows and greens and most of her pain was gone. She knew with some clever tricks of her make-up, she could hide most of them if she felt like going out.

Daryl noticed that she was still slightly subdued, but hoped in time she would be back to normal. He had turned down some recently offered overtime as he didn't want to leave her alone over the weekend. He wanted his Princess back.

The one thing that he knew that she truly loved to do was ride behind him on his motorcycle. They hadn't been out on it in a couple weeks and it was time for them to ride again. They both could use the freedom of the road.

Gabrielle had stayed in the house all week not wanting anyone to see her face and have to answer unwanted questions. As much as she loved their little house, it was starting to close in on her. She heard Daryl's boots coming down the stairs and wondered why he had them on. He typically wore them when he rode and he didn't tell her he had plans today to go anywhere.

"Mornin' beautiful," he said as he entered the kitchen. He popped a kiss on her head as he went to get himself a cup of coffee. As much as he thought her overly expensive coffee machine was ridiculous, it sure as hell made a good cup of coffee. He was glad she brought it with her from Atlanta.

"What are your plans today, Princess?"

"Nothing really. What about you?"

Daryl took another sip of his coffee. "Thought we'd go for a ride today, maybe a nice long one. Whadda think?"

Gabrielle's eyes lit up. "Really? We haven't been out on the bike in weeks. I'd love to go!" She started to run towards the stairs to change out of her t-shirt and shorts and into riding clothes, but she stopped short. She ran back to Daryl and crushed her lips to his. He had been gentle with her all week as she healed and now it looked like she was ready for him again.

Daryl's tongue pushed hard against hers until he controlled her mouth, then it softened. Gabrielle leaned into him and the kiss. She knew he was taking it easy on her giving her time to heal both mentally and physically, and had not even attempted to have sex with her. She appreciated his concern and consideration, but she was ready to have their lives go back to normal. Going riding today was a great start.

Gabrielle broke the kiss first. "I better get changed," she told him with a smile, "Or we may not make it and I really want to ride today."

"Get going, Princess otherwise I may just take you right here on the counter." The hungry look Daryl gave her sent had her getting instantly wet for him, but that was going to have to wait, she needed this ride on his bike first.

"Save that for later," she told him with a wink as she dashed upstairs.

It ended up being a perfect day for a ride. They traveled over back roads for hours just enjoying the fresh air and the road. It was a rare day in Georgia that the heat wasn't stifling and the cloudless sky was a perfect blue.

Gabrielle hung onto Daryl enjoying every minute of the ride. There were plenty of times that she could have just been sitting behind him without holding on, but half of the enjoyment of the trip was holding onto her husband as they drove around the countryside.

She knew Daryl blamed himself for what happened to her, but she didn't at all. Sure it was his brother that basically kidnapped her, but that did not make it Daryl's fault. Merle was the only one responsible. The freedom she felt riding behind him was the best medicine for her. It helped her start to put away that horrible day and get back to living the way she should.

Daryl always enjoyed being out in his bike, especially since he got the new Triumph. He had been a loner for so long that having Gabrielle ride behind him was really unique in the beginning. It did take a little bit to get used to having her there all the time, but now he missed her when he rode alone. When he bought the bike, he didn't think they had a chance in hell of staying married or he may have thought of getting another Harley instead of the Triumph as they are more conducive to double riding, but he did love his Triumph Tiger.

They road for hours before finally stopping back at _The Monkey Farm_ for a late lunch. Mack was happy to see them both after their extended absence when they were trying to avoid Merle. Since Daryl had skipped breakfast he was starving so in addition to their normal cheeseburger order he added a large order for chili cheese fries.

Mack served them a couple of beers while they waited and sat down with them for a moment. He had known Daryl for years and was happy that he had turned his life around from his troublesome days and was doing well. Gabrielle was a perfect match for him and Daryl enjoyed her spunkiness.

"So haven't seen your brother around lately," said Mack.

Daryl took a long sip of his beer before responding. "Nope. From what I heard he's left town for good. He knows if I see him again, I'll kill him." Daryl's eyes saw the question in Mack's. "Seriously."

"Hate to say it Daryl, but it's for the better." Mack heard the bell from the kitchen and stood up. "Be right back with your food."

Gabrielle leaned her head on her husband's shoulder. "Love you Daryl Dixon."

"Love ya back Gabrielle Dixon." He kissed the top of her head.

She looked up at him and gave him a big smile. "Thanks for today. It was just what I needed."

"I know," he said before he leaned over to kiss her full lips. This was the deep type of kiss that he loved. He had been gentle with her all week, but now they could go back to their normal toe-curling passionate kisses.

"Hey you two, eat first then get a room," Mack laughed as he walked away from their table. Neither of them heard him put their burgers down on the table.

Gabrielle giggled. If Mack only knew where her hand was at that moment, he'd probably ask them to leave. "Good idea Mack!" She gave Daryl's now hard dick another squeeze through his jeans and picked up her burger with an innocent smile.

Daryl leaned over and whispered in her ear, "Just wait until we get home."

"Promise?" she purred. "I have plans for my mouth to do wicked things to you later."

Just when Daryl was hoping that the hard on in his pants would have a chance to go down, she had to go and say something like that. Gabrielle had one incredibly talented mouth and his dick loved it. "We're eatin' and headin' right home. That is as long as I don't bend you over my bike in the parkin' lot and take you from behind when we get outside." He could tease her as just good as she could do to him.

"Eat fast!" Gabrielle laughed.

They ended up not rushing their dinner, but they didn't dawdle either. They paid Mack at the bar and Daryl took Gabrielle's hand as they turned to head out. They were almost at the door when they heard, "Hey Dixon."

They both turned around and saw Buddy Conlon approaching them with a pool cue in his hand. Daryl just gave him a steely glare wondering what the asshole wanted. "What?"

"You're brother owes me money."

"If you're talking about the money I'm sure he promised you for ratting me out that last time I was here, you ain't never gonna see that." Daryl moved closer so he was inches from Buddy's face. "You ever doing somethin' like that to me again, I'll take you out into the lot and beat your ass so bad, they'll have to carry you home, Conlon. That's a promise."

"And I'll kick you in the balls so hard, you may just change into a girl," Gabrielle added. "Let's go babe, he isn't worth our time."

"Fuckin' loser," Daryl mumbled loud enough so that everyone could hear. Daryl tugged on Gabrielle's hand and they headed towards the door, just before she went through, Gabrielle looked back at a pissed off Buddy. She made an 'L' with her thumb and index finger and put it to her forehead. Most everyoine in the bar burst started to laugh as the door closed behind her.

Daryl handed her a helmet. "What did you do?"

Gabrielle showed him and he burst out laughing. "Let's get ourselves home before we cause any more trouble, Princess."

The sun was a low orange ball in the sky by the time they got home. They both raced for the front door and Daryl juggled the keys a bit in his haste to get in the front door. Finally the door flew open and they rushed inside. Gabrielle threw the bolt across to lock the world out. Tonight was just about them.

It was a frantic and frenzied few minutes as they couldn't get their clothes off fast enough. Daryl was hopping around on one foot trying to get a boot off as Gabrielle was much faster and was almost completely naked before he had his boots and shirt off. As soon as the last piece of clothing hit the floor were wrapped around each other like they hadn't had sex in weeks, instead of days.

Daryl ground his hips against Gabrielle. "See what you do to me woman," he growled. With his heart thudding in his chest, sending all of his blood south, he took control of her mouth as his tongue clashed with hers.

Gabrielle easily felt his hard erection pressing up against flat stomach. Everything about him turned her on. "Mmm…," she hummed as her tongue slid out to meet his. She was eager to explore his mouth, burying her hands in his hair to angle his head more fully to align their lips.

His hands quickly found themselves full of her breasts. He loved feeling the weight of them in his hands. He squeezed them roughly know that was what she liked and then pinched her nipples between his rough fingers eliciting several low moans to come from her.

Gabrielle's' hands left his hair and one rested on his hip as the other's fingers wrapped around his aching cock. As they still stood in their living room, Gabrielle dropped down to the floor on her knees and rubbed her face along his hard shaft, then ever so slowly she dew him into her open mouth, swirling her tongue around his wide head.

"Oh God, yes," he groaned.

Her hands caressed him up and down his thighs to finally join her mouth, one curving around his base to match the motion of her tongue and the other reaching lower to squeeze his balls. Daryl immediately put his hands in her hair and held her head still as he moved himself in and out of her mouth. When he felt himself hit the back of her throat, he almost lost his load. He wasn't ready to come this soon.

Daryl reluctantly pulled himself out of her talented mouth and practically threw her onto the sofa. Now it was Daryl's turn to get between Gabrielle's legs and he started with a combination of kisses and nips along her inner thighs. His eyes met hers as they traveled higher and higher and he saw the same lust and hunger in hers that he knew he felt. She was the only woman he would ever want this badly and he still could never get enough of her.

He kissed the softness at the top of one thigh, then the other, savoring the moment before he actually tasted her. It still thrilled him that she was always bare down there, so when his mouth traveled from her thigh to her slit he knew she could easily feel every single touch of his lips. When his tongue invaded her body, Gabrielle arched her back off the sofa as small electrical shocks flowed throughout her body in anticipation. He knew everything that she liked, everything she needed and everything she begged for. And he was ready to give it to her.

This past week had been torture for him as he gave her space to heal. She didn't ask for it, but he knew that she needed it. Before the kidnapping, they had sex all the time and anywhere they felt like it in their little house. Daryl loved that she was adventurous and together they learned how far they could take it.

He had a week of pent up frustration he needed to get rid of, which almost made him laugh as he spent years getting laid occasionally and now he could barely go a day. As he looked at the hunger in her eyes, Daryl knew she didn't need it soft and slow, but tonight would be about hard, fast and making her come as many times as he could...starting with now.

Gabrielle was trying not to writhe too much as Daryl did magical things to her with his mouth. His fingers kept her spread apart for easy access to every part of her sexual core. It was when he took full control of her clit with his tongue that started her quick climb towards ecstasy. When he filled her with not one but two fingers and found the spot inside her that always sent her over the edge. Immediately the universe exploded around her and she cried out over and over again as her body shook from the intense orgasm.

She had barely finished before her pulled her off the sofa and turned her around. She knew what he wanted…she always did. Gabrielle bent over at the waist and spread her legs to allow his access to her.

Daryl pressed his naked body roughly against her so she could feel how hard he was for her. Then he positioned himself so she could feel the tip of his cock pressing against her swollen wet sex. Then he suddenly thrust inside of her and with one hand she supported herself as he pounded himself in and out of her. God that felt so good.

With her other hand she touched herself to quicken along her next climax, as she wanted to come with him. She had to.

"Yeah, that's it touch your pussy baby, come with me…come on come with me," he growled. "Almost there …oh fuck!" He kept thrusting chasing his own orgasm as he gasped _'oh fuck'_ over and over again, and then he was there.

"Yes…oh God yes," she cried out at the same time. Together they tumbled off the edge of the world.


	36. Chapter 36

**Chapter 36**

Months went by and everything was going well in the Dixon household. Gabrielle had long since recovered both mentally and physically from her ordeal. Her small marketing company was doing well. She had over a dozen independent businesses working with her and everyone was pleased. Her business was still growing all the time. Between her income and Daryl's they were no longer living paycheck to paycheck. There was a little extra money to put in the bank and some to spend these days.

This was the first time in his life that Daryl wasn't worrying about money. It was such a relief not to have to figure out where to get the rent money from and to always have a full refrigerator was a luxury he was getting used to. He was so happy with his life that at times he kept waiting for reality to step in and kick him to the curb. The best thing he ever did in his whole life was go to Las Vegas. That trip completely changed his life and while the beginning was a bit rough, it had all worked out better than he could have ever dreamed.

Gabrielle had been feeling a bit run down lately and she didn't know why. She was eating well, went running several times a week and had no reason to be feeling this way. Without telling Daryl she made an appointment with a doctor, hoping she just needed vitamins.

The appointment seemed to be going well as she sat on the cold examination table in a paper gown. The doctor had just finished taking her vitals, when there was a light knock at the door. The nurse came in and handed him a piece of paper and left.

The doctor looked at it and smiled. "When was your last period, Gabrielle?"

"Last month, no make that...hmm, I'm not sure. I've never been too regular, even on birth control pills. Why?" she asked as her heart started to race.

"The urine sample you have us today came back positive. You're pregnant."

Gabrielle just sat there in shock. That couldn't be right, she was on the pill and she never ever missed a dose. "But Doctor, I'm on the pill and I swear I never missed one…ever. How can I be pregnant?"

"Gabrielle, nothing is one hundred percent. This proves it, but just to be sure, let me run another test and do a vaginal exam to be certain. Okay?"

Gabrielle nodded her head yes and the doctor left to order the blood test and get a nurse to assist him. Meanwhile, she just sat there in shock. The one thing that she and Daryl had never talked about was kids. She had no idea how he would react to this. Would be he happy? Or would he be angry at her thinking she did this on purpose. Why had they never talked about this?

She had always figured that after her career was well on its way and she was established as a partner at the agency, she would marry and most likely have one child, but that was not anything she had thought about in a long time. In the last year her life had completely changed and she really hadn't thought about having a baby. She should have since she and Daryl were married, but she really hadn't. It was odd, but the one thing they never spoke about was kids.

After the exam confirmed she was indeed pregnant, Gabrielle sat in the parking lot in her car letting the weight of everything hit her. She was pregnant with Daryl's baby. Her hands went automatically to her stomach and stayed there thinking of the tiny person growing inside of her. Then it hit her, she wanted this child more than anything in the world.

Gabrielle wanted to give the baby the love she received from her mother and get that unconditional love back. It was a piece of both her and Daryl and she needed that in her life. She just wished she had an idea on how Daryl would feel about this. She was absolutely clueless, but she knew without a shadow of a doubt that she wanted this baby.

When she got home, she called the obstetrician that her doctor recommended for an appointment and got one for the end of next week. Then she went up to her office and tried to get some work done, but she simply could not concentrate. Instead, she decided to make a nice dinner for Daryl so they could celebrate. How could he not want their precious little baby?

The chicken parmesan was in the oven when she heard his bike pull into the driveway. He was right on time. Gabrielle smooth the non-existent wrinkles from the front of the sun dress she had put on and waited nervously for him to come in.

"Somethin' smells good," he commented putting his helmet away in the closet. "Gonna go shower and be back down."

"No rush," she called out from the kitchen. Gabrielle desperately wanted a glass of wine to calm her nerves, but she knew that she could not have it. Even though he was only upstairs for about twenty minutes, it felt like hours as she waited for him to join her in the living room.

When he did make his way downstairs, gone was the uniform they made him wear and he was back in a pair of worn jeans and shirt that had he sleeves cut off…his favorite attire. "So what's for…whoa, you're dressed up. What's going on Princess?" he asked after dropping a kiss on her lips.

Gabrielle took his hand in hers and together they sat on the sofa. "I have some news."

"Okay," he said warily. "Good news?"

"Really good news. This is very unexpected and I know we haven't ever talked about this this, but Daryl…I'm pregnant." Gabrielle sat there hoping to see a smile flash onto his face, but it didn't happen. Instead confusion turned to shock which turned to stone cold. She had seen this look from him before and it wasn't good. Why wasn't he happy? "Daryl?"

A million things just flew through Daryl's head and none of them were good. Pregnant? Gabrielle is pregnant? Why the hell did she have to go and do that! "Did you lie to me when you said that you were on the pill? Or did you conveniently forget to take one or two or ten?" Daryl roughly pulled his hand away from hers and stood up. He started to pace the room.

"How could you have done that to me? To us? Fuck Gabrielle, how stupid are you!" His voice was cold and angry. The last thing he wanted was kid to screw up.

Gabrielle went from shock at his reaction to anger. "How could I have done that to you? Are you fucking serious Daryl? I wasn't alone in that bed you know. It takes two people to make a baby and you were more than happy to fuck me every night, weren't you?"

"You were supposed to be in the pill!" he shouted.

"I was! And that's what I said to the doctor, and he reminded me that nothing is ever one hundred percent." This was worse than anything she ever expected form him, shock yes, but once that was gone, he should have been happy. But this? The accusations that it was her fault. Who was this man?

"You didn't conveniently skip a few pills?" There was no way he could ever raise a kid. He assumed that since she never spoke about kids, that she felt the same way he did. He never wanted a child.

"No I didn't you ass! It just happened." Gabrielle took a deep breath to calm herself and get control of the situation. "Daryl, it was one of those tiny percentages where the pill failed, maybe you have very determined sperm, I don't know, but I'm pregnant. It happened, now we have a baby on the way. We're already married, so I don't know what's so wrong. Don't married couples have families?" She would reason with him and he'd turn around. It was just the shock. Right? Gabrielle bit her bottom lip trying not to cry.

"You shoulda talked to me first!" he spat back at her.

"I didn't plan this! Why don't you understand that? It just happened, can't we be happy?" Tears started to gather in the corner of her eyes as she realized this was more than shock for him. Did he really not want this baby?

"No." Daryl knew he had to get out of the house before everything got more out of control than it already was. He didn't want a kid, never did. He would ruin that kid's life and he didn't want to be responsible for that. Hell, he just got his own life under control and he was almost forty.

Daryl ran upstairs and came back down in his boots and with a jacket. Gabrielle kept pleading with him to stay home and they could work this out, but this was the last place he wanted to be right now. Didn't she get it? He was not father material.

He grabbed his helmet from the closet and simply walked out the door, leaving Gabrielle crying on the sofa. The loud revving of the engine echoed his mood and he flew out of the drive and down the street without a destination in mind. He just needed to get out of there, he felt like he was being smothered to death and he just couldn't handle it.

Daryl rode around for a couple of hours hoping his anger would diminish, but it didn't. He took the bike up to speeds that he usually didn't dare, his concern for his safety was non-existent. Finally he stopped at a bar in town that he hadn't ever been to. Yeah, getting drunk off his ass was a good idea.

He parked the bike and sauntered inside. He put the helmet down on the stool next to him and sat at the bar. It was nothing more than a local dive with scattered tables of losers just like him. A few older guys were belly up to the bar.

He ordered a beer and a shot of Jack Daniels. He talked to no one and just kept drinking. How the fuck had this happened? Well, he knew how it happened, but it shouldn't have. He had never heard of anyone getting pregnant while on the pill as long as they didn't miss one. Either she played him or the jolt of reality that he had been expecting to screw up his new perfect life, just hit.

The Dixon gene pool was cursed. Alcoholism was rampant throughout the family, the men spent as much time in jail as out and they were nothing but a bunch of losers…himself included. This was Gabrielle's chance to get out and if she was stupid enough to kept the baby, then she could find a guy better suited for fatherhood than he was.

The thought of losing her, was like a knife to his gut. It hurt so bad, that all he could do was try to drink it away. Towards the end of the night, the bartender cut him off and Daryl wasn't happy. He couldn't remember how many shots he had, but he could still picture Gabrielle crying on the couch, that meant he still needed to drink.

"Buddy, c'mon you've had enough. Can I call someone to pick you up?" the bartender suggested. He had seen more than his share of people trying to drink their problems away and this guy was certainly one of them. "How about a cup of coffee on me?"

"I don't want coffee I just want 'nother shot. Ain't that your job to pour the drink and not be my damn wife!" Daryl stood up and slammed his hands on the bar. Everyone in there turned to see what was going on.

The bartender was about to throw him out, when the door opened and he looked up to see who it was. Talk about perfect timing, it was an on-duty deputy.

The cop nodded to the bartender already understanding the situation he had walked into just two seconds earlier.

"Where's my drink?" Daryl slurred. It was getting harder to focus, but he was trying.

"Daryl?" said a familiar voice behind him.

He turned slowly to see Rick standing there in his uniform, then he turned back to the guy wiping a glass behind the bar. "You called the cops on me, asshole?"

"Nope, just your dumb luck one walked in. Time to go buddy. Your tab is thirty-two bucks, appreciate it if you pay up now."

"Are you…calling me dumb?" Daryl stood up but the room began to sway on him. He grabbed the edge of the bar to try to steady himself.

"Hey man, how're you doing?" Rick asked leaning up against the bar.

"I'm drunk, but not drunk enough yet and this prick won't serve me anymore." He wasn't hurting anyone but himself getting drunk, why couldn't they just let him drink.

"Bro, he can't serve you anymore. You're too wasted. C'mon with me, I'll take ya home." Rick tossed forty bucks on the bar to cover Daryl's tab.

Daryl turned trying to focus on his friends face, "I ain't going home."

"Then come home with me."

"Ain't…gggoing there either."

"Why not?" Rick asked.

"Cause your wife will call my wife and mine ain't to happy wwwith me right now." Nope he wasn't going home or to Rick's. He couldn't take Michonne's disappointment in him…again. "I'll get a room. How 'bout that."

Daryl stood up and was quite unsteady on his feet. Rick put an arm around his friend and half carried him out to his cruiser. He opened the back door and Daryl put a hand out to stop Rick from putting him inside.

"You arresting me Grimes?"

"Of course not. Get into the car. You know you can't ride up front, 'specialy when you are this loaded. Quit being a pain in the ass Daryl and just get in."

Daryl basically fell into the backseat and Rick closed the door on him. He tossed Daryl's motorcycle helmet onto the passenger seat and started the car. By the time they made it to the cheapest, but cleanest motel in town, Rick heard snores coming from the back seat. He knew this was going to be a long night.

He went into reception and paid for a room. With key in hand he drove down to where the room was and parked. It took a lot of strength to practically drag Daryl inside. He was half awake and barely coherent. Rick rolled him onto the bed, but made sure he wasn't on his back. There was no way he was going to let Daryl get sick and choke. He was bound to throw up at some point.

He took off Daryl's boots and sat himself down in the uncomfortable chair that was in the room. Rick felt his phone vibrate in his pocket and he pulled it out. It was his wife, who he was actually about to call. Towards the end of his shift, she had called him to be on the lookout for his friend. Once Gabrielle had pulled herself together enough to talk, she called Michonne and told her what had happened with Daryl. Rick had spent the last hour looking for him before he saw his bike parked in front of that bar.

It was going to be a long night waiting for Daryl to sober up. There was no way he was leaving his best friend alone. He had to get to the bottom of why Gabrielle being pregnant was enough for Daryl to be this angry about. He and Michonne had been trying for months, without any success. Daryl's reaction was stronger than an unexpected surprise, it was too over the top. Something else was going on.

Rick answered his phone and started to make plans with his wife on how they were going to help their best friends through this. It's what family did.


	37. Chapter 37

The intense pounding in his head is what woke Daryl up. That combined with the fact that his mouth was dry as a bone and every single muscle in his body hurt he knew he was in bad shape. What the hell had happened to him? Slowly Daryl raised his right hand to his head, yeah it as still attached. He had been doubtful. Carefully he opened his eyes and saw he was in a strange motel room with a single dim light on. From the amount of light coming in from under the closed curtains, it looked to be early morning,

How had be gotten here? What fucking stupid thing did he do this time? It took him a couple minutes before he could physically sit up. Between the shooting pain in his head and the rolling in his stomach, he didn't dare move once he was sitting on the edge of the bed. The one thing he noticed, thank-fucking-God, that no one else had been in bed with him. No matter what happened, he hadn't cheated on Gabrielle.

The minute he said her name, parts of last night started coming back. They had a fight… a really big one. She told him she was pregnant and like the lowlife redneck he was, he walked out on her. "Nice going asshole, you walked out on your pregnant wife. What the fuck is wrong with you?" he asked himself out loud.

"I was about to ask you that same question."

Daryl hadn't heard anyone enter the room, but before he jumped off the bed onto legs that he wasn't sure would hold him up, he recognized the voice. "Grimes, what the fuck are you doing here? What am I doing here?"

The door closed behind Rick and he entered the dim room with a tray of coffees and a bag of takeout. The minute the smell of the food hit Daryl he knew he was in trouble. He bolted for the bathroom and made it just in time to lose his stomach to the porcelain gods. After twenty minutes he was finally able to wobbly stand up. He didn't remember feeling this bad ever. He had many hangovers in his life, but this ranked as the worst one. Getting older sucked if he couldn't handle a few shots and beers.

"Why are you here?" Daryl muttered as he stood in the bathroom doorway.

"To take care of your sorry ass, why else?" Rick took a sip from the piping hot coffee.

"I don't need a babysitter, Grimes. Just go."

"Hell no. Until I find out why you are being such a complete ass to Gabby, I'm staying put." Rick could easily see that Daryl was not happy he was here. Well, neither was he. He spent the entire night sitting in a chair watching his best friend snore the night away instead of being home with his beautiful wife. She had put him in charge of finding out why Daryl was so against Gabby being pregnant, so even if this was the last thing he wanted to do, he was doing it.

"Get out Grimes. That's between me and Gabrielle. Ain't none of your business!" Daryl growled at him.

"It became my business when you got so fucking drunk last night that I had to drag you outta that bar just before they called the station on you. How would that look to Gabrielle's clients that her husband was carted off to jail for drunk and disorderly?" Huh? Did ya think of that?" Rick just shook his head at his friend, and then he opened the second breakfast sandwich he had brought for himself and took a big bite.

Daryl hadn't thought about anything but himself last night. He might be really mad at Gabrielle right now, but he certainly did not want to do anything that would hurt her business. He was still so used to thinking only about himself that he never considered her during his heavy drinking except to blame her. "I don't wanna talk about it."

"You got no choice, man. Take a shower, maybe that'll help ya feel better. I got a cup of coffee here with your name on it when you get out and if you can handle food a sandwich too. There are clean clothes in the plastic bag for ya." Daryl looked at Rick furious that he may have gone to Gabrielle before him. "Relax man. Those are some of my stuff that Michonne dropped off. Should fit ya." Daryl was still looking none too happy with him. "Just go shower before I drink all the coffee on you. I was the one up all night dickhead."

Daryl grabbed the plastic bag before slamming the bathroom door. He heard Rick laughing out in the room. " _Douchebag_ ," he muttered under his breath as he stripped off his clothes. They reeked of sweat, cigarettes, and beer.

Standing under a shower with water as hot as he could stand it, he waited as his head started to clear. He remembered the big fight they had and him storming off. He rode for a long time before stopping off at that bar. Then he remembered a lot of beer and shots of Jack, but nothing after that. This was the second time in a year he had gotten this stupidly drunk. The first time was in Vegas where he ended up married to Gabrielle and now again it was because of her. This could very well be the end for them. That thought hit him hard.

He loved her more than he ever thought possible. They were good together…really good, but they didn't need a baby screwing that up. He barely had the hang of being a husband and now he was going to be a father? He'd be the worst dad ever. Look who had had for his old man and he didn't want to fuck a kid up like he was. She would be better off without him.

That thought almost knocked him to his knees. He put his hand on the slick tile wall to support himself. What he thought was the shower water running down his face, was actually tears. It would kill him to lose Gabrielle, but not as much as it would to completely fuck up a kid's life like his was. He had no business raising a child. None.

With that sobering thought, he pulled himself together and got out of the shower. Rick's clothes were a little bit snug on him, but they would do. He threw his dirty clothes into the plastic bag and headed for that cup of coffee Rick had for him. Once the caffeine hit him, he'd be able to think better and make some plans. Rick had pulled the straight back chair from the small desk in the room up to the round table he sat at. There was a cup of slightly hot coffee waiting there for Daryl.

He plopped himself down in the chair and neither of them said a thing as they both sat there drinking their coffee. "Can you keep down a sandwich?" Rick finally asked.

"We'll see. Thanks," Daryl said extending out a hand for it. While Daryl was eating slowly, Rick put a bottle of water and a few aspirin on the table. Daryl picked them up and swallowed the aspirin with about half the bottle of water before he went back to eating. Only when he finished, did Rick ask the question he had been waiting to ask all night.

"Why don't you want a kid?"

"Just don't."

"Listen that's not good enough and you know it, but let me tell you one thing. I'd kill to be in your position right now. Michonne and I have been trying to make a baby since we got married and nothing has happened. And believe me we are trying hard," Rick said with a soft laugh. "We got an appointment next week with a doctor to see if it's one of us."

"You really want a kid?" Daryl asked and watched his friend shake his head yes. "Doesn't it scare you that you are responsible for the kid and you could screw him up?"

Rick just got the insight he was looking for. "Yep, I want a kid. Can't think of anything more awesome than being a dad. But Daryl, no one goes into this knowing what to do, it's a learn as you go type of thing. My dad was a good role model for me, and sure I'm scared, but I really want this, so that's why next week I get to wack off into a cup so they can check my swimmers. That my friend is how bad I want a kid."

Daryl finished drinking his now cold coffee letting Rick's words sink in. Rick would be a good father. He was raised in a loving household with two caring parents, he knew what to do even if he didn't think he did. He, on the other hand, was raised by an inattentive mother and an abusive father. That didn't bode well for his kid. There wasn't one Dixon in his family tree that wasn't fucked up…himself included.

"You'll be a good dad, Rick. You will. Me...I'll just screw the kid up as bad or worse than I am. I know nuthin' about being a good father. Look at the piece of shit that raised me." Daryl drained the rest of the water in the bottle. "If Gabrielle wants to keep the kid, fine…I'll send her money, but I ain't raising it. It's better off without me. They both are."

Rick didn't say anything for a couple minutes. He just looked at his best friend with the head tilt that had Daryl rolling his eyes. He had seen that look dozens of times from him and he knew he wasn't going to like what he had to say. He never did, even when Rick was right.

"I never took you for being stupid, man but what just came outta your mouth is pure bullshit. You had a shitty childhood…I'll give you that, but don't forget that you were around my house enough and lived with us for almost two years to see what a real family was like. Daryl, you don't get it. You already know what not to do…you lived through it. All you gotta do is love you kid and use common sense in raising it. You'll screw up, I'll screw up…all parents do, but they figure it out. You and Gabby can do this together. That's what being married is all about."

Rick could see the wheels turning for Daryl as he processed what he had said. His friend was definitely a damaged soul, but Rick knew he could still be a great dad. He had the faith in him that Daryl didn't have in himself. "Listen, the room's paid up, just check out by twelve. Here's the keys to the bike, it's right outside. Figure out what your gonna do, cause you got a pregnant wife at home that loves you, but is pretty damn upset. Get your shit together and go see her. You owe her that. Okay?"

"I will. It was a shock on something I never expected to happen. I'm sure she's fuckin' pissed at me."

"But mostly worried. And Daryl"

"Yeah?"

"You're not your father. Remember that." Rick told him. The sincerity in his gaze spoke volumes to Daryl.

They both stood up and hugged. Rick's father had taught them both that hugging was not only for girls. He made sure they knew it was okay for family and friends. Rick and Daryl were both. Rick was about out the door when Daryl asked, "How did my bike get here?"

Rick flashed him a big smile. "It is a sweet ride."

Daryl's mouth dropped open. "Bro, if you fucked up my bike...you're dead."

"Relax. You taught me well. Not a scratch on her, so stop worrying about the fucking bike and fix your marriage. That's more important than this…this beautiful powerful piece of exquisite machinery, Dixon. Can I borrow it sometime?"

"Maybe…I may need a place to crash after this is all over. It's my bargaining chip," Daryl half-joked. He had no idea what was going to happen with him and Gabrielle.

"You gotta win Michonne over for that, man. Not me." Rick waved goodbye and was soon driving out of the parking lot in his cruiser.

Daryl went back into the motel room to try to figure out what the hell he should do. He dropped down on the bed and lit up a cigarette. He should have told Gabrielle how he felt about kids months ago. They were so comfortable in their lifestyle and she was busy setting up her business that having a baby didn't even enter his mind. When he accused her of doing it on purpose he knew he was out of line. She never missed a pill. He owed her an apology for that.

That Rick and Michonne had been unsuccessfully trying to have a baby was a complete surprise. He thought they were content with their lives like he and Gabrielle were. A baby would change their friendship, but then again Daryl like hanging out at either one of their homes. He felt more comfortable around them than anyone else. He doubted that would change.

It wasn't that he didn't like kids, he just thought he'd really suck at being a father. What did he know about raising a kid the right way? Then again, Rick did remind him that while his old man had been a piece of shit, he did spend plenty of time at the Grimes' house and saw the type of man Mr. G was. He was the man that took a scared beaten sixteen-year-old boy into his home and raised him as his own. He wasn't just a good man, but a great father. That's the type of man Daryl wished he could be.

With all of the time he spent at the Grimes house, Daryl did get to see and experience what a good responsible father was like. Was that enough? Could those good times, outweigh all those bad years? Well, he was certainly going to find out wasn't he, because they weren't talking about Gabrielle getting pregnant, she already was. Maybe the first thing he had to do was admit he may be wrong and go talk this out with his wife. He owed that to Gabrielle.

Daryl picked up the bag with his dirty clothes and slammed the door behind him. He used a bungee cord to strap it to the back of the bike before throwing his leg over to straddle his baby. It was time to go home and face the music…and be the man Mr. Grimes taught him to be.


	38. Chapter 38 & Epilogue

**Chapter 38**

Gabrielle was absently drying a glass in the kitchen when she heard the bike pull up. There was no mistaking the sound of that engine. It was unique as her husband was. Fear caused her to start to shake. She had been waiting for him all night and now she would find out if he still wanted to stay married.

She knew that they had never talked about kids and that Daryl's childhood was anything but good, but she did not expect the reaction she got from him. Surprise and shock…definitely. Nervous and afraid of the responsibilities it entailed…of course, but the anger and accusations he threw at her were heartbreaking. How could he believe that she would do that on purpose without talking to him? Did he not know her at all?

After he stormed out of the house, and she had herself a really long cry before she called Michonne. She needed her friend to guide and soothe her. Michonne excelled at both. The panic she felt when Daryl walked out on her and the subsequent hysteria she went through, Gabrielle knew was not good for the baby. Michonne listened to what had happened, called Daryl some very creative names before she helped Gabrielle take the first step in fixing this, which was finding Daryl and bringing him home.

That is what they used Rick for. He came through as always and once Daryl was found and settled into the motel room to sleep off his drunkenness, Rick let his wife know what was going on. She subsequently called Gabrielle and let her know that Rick had found Daryl belligerently drunk and had taken him to a motel to sleep it off. At least she knew he was safe.

What she didn't know what man was going to be walking in that door – a happy one or one that was about to pack his bags. She prayed for the first one, but when she heard the front door open, her nerves got to her and she dropped the glass she was holding. It shattered it into a million tiny sharp fragments on the floor.

"Gabrielle!" Daryl shouted and dropped everything as he raced to the kitchen. "Are you alright? What happened?"

"I broke a glass," she told him with tears streaming down her face. Silently she cursed the hormones that were raging through her causing her to cry at the slightest thing. She was trying to blame her non-stop crying on anything but Daryl.

"Are you wearing shoes?" he asked.

Gabrielle shook her head no. Daryl instantly strode over to her as stepping on the broken glass. His thick soled boots saved him from the sharp shards as he scooped her up into his arms. The glass crunched under his feet as he moved her out of the kitchen. He didn't want to bring the glass shards onto the carpet so he put her down gently once he reached the living room.

"I'll go clean up the kitchen and you stay here. Then we'll talk, okay?" Daryl watched her nod, yes, but he saw fear in her eyes and he hated that he was the cause. "I'm sorry, Princess. I'm an ass," he told her before giving her a gentle kiss.

Quickly, yet thoroughly Daryl cleaned up the broken glass. All the while he worked he remembered the sadness, the fear and the uncertainness he saw on Gabrielle's face. It was entirely his fault. He was the one causing her this pain. He loved her more than life itself, but he was afraid too. How would a baby change them? He had finally gotten used to living with her all the time. He had been a loner for so long and to have someone not just in his life, but around him all the time was hard at first. He had gotten used to it and now loved it, but it had been a hard transition.

He loved Gabrielle and did enjoy her around all the time. She made his life happier and fun, but at the same time, he never had a minute to himself. Even his rides on his bike included her. The one time he asked if he could go alone, she looked so forlorn that he told her was teasing her and of course she was coming. Now there was another person coming into their lives that he was going to be responsible for. Could he do it?

Daryl put away the broom in the closet and went to the back door to take off his boots. He had already brushed the bottoms clean of glass, but he did not want to track anything through the house. He knew he was stalling, but it was time to talk to Gabrielle.

Barefoot, he padded into the living room and dropped down on the sofa across from her. They both had so much to say to each other, yet neither said a single word. Finally, Gabrielle spoke, "Daryl, I want you to know that I didn't plan this. It was as much of a surprise to me as it was to you. I'm sorry."

"Princess, don't be sorry for something that wasn't your fault. I'm sorry that I accused you of getting pregnant on purpose. That's not you and it was me being a stupid prick to have said that. I just…never wanted kids and this…was a shock…a big one and I reacted badly. Really fucking badly," he admitted.

Daryl looked Gabrielle right in the eyes so she would know that his apology was sincere. She looked tired, her face was pale and her eyes were red…all because of him. But even with all that going on, she was still the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. He couldn't lose her because of his insecurities.

"I know we never talked about kids, but why don't you want them?" she asked in a soft voice so unlike herself.

He hated to admit his shortcomings especially to someone he respected and loved. "Because I knew I'd suck at being a dad. What do I know about what it takes to be a good father? Not a helluva lot and I didn't want I screw up a kid like I was and still am."

He was afraid. Gabrielle could handle that because so was she. Didn't he see he wasn't his father? Not by a long shot. Gabrielle finally smiled, "Daryl, I'm scared too. Every new parent goes into raising a baby with doubts and worries, but you need to realize something. You are not your father. He was an evil hateful man and you are nothing like that. Can you say our marriage is anything like what you remember of your parents?"

He was only eight when his mother died, but he still remembered the fights, the screaming and the hatred his parents had for each other. His marriage to Gabrielle was nothing like that. He enjoyed every minute he spent with her. They laughed a lot, which was something he never used to do and they made love all the time. They fit together perfectly and he hadn't expected that to ever happen either. This woman had changed his life completely and for that, he would be forever grateful.

"No, our marriage ain't nuthin' like my parents. They hated each other and we can't get enough of each other…and I love you. That word was never spoken in our house. Ever."

"So what made you think you would screw up a kid? I know you are smart enough to recognize what not to do with a child. You would never hit a child like you were hit. You would never verbally abuse them like you were. You are not your father Daryl, can't you see that?" Her heart went out to her husband that his childhood abuse was still messing with his head. He was a good man, how could he not realize that?

Gabrielle took his hand in hers. She needed to touch him, to have that physical connection with him.

Daryl had looked down at the floor while she was talking. It embarrassed him that she had the confidence in him that he lacked. How could she be so understanding after how badly he treated her? "Rick kinda said the same thing to me too. That I'm not my old man and that there's no reason I couldn't be a good father." Daryl finally raised his eyes back up to meet Gabrielle's shining blue ones. "Do you think I could do this and be an okay dad?"

She scooted herself closer to Daryl. "I know you can. I have absolutely no doubts that you aren't going to be anything but a great father to our baby, but when I have my doubts about myself and I do, we can both lean on each other. Okay?"

"Okay," he told her with a smile.

"We're good, again?" she asked.

"Yep. We are." Gabrielle laid her head on his shoulder and Daryl wrapped his arms around her. "Holy fuck, Princess…we gonna be parents!"

She could tell by the sound of his voice, he was over his fears. She was afraid too, but Gabrielle knew together they would make a good team. Together they could do anything. "Do you want a boy or a girl?"

Daryl thought for a moment. A boy like him or a stunning little girl like her momma. He wasn't sure he could handle having a beautiful girl that would eventually date and he'd probably end up in jail for threatening the boys that followed her home. "Don't much care, but if it is a girl, she ain't ever gonna date. No fuckin' way, Princess."

"Why not?"

"Cause I know those boys are after one thing and they ain't gonna touching my little girl…like this…" Daryl cupped one of Gabrielle's full breasts in his hands and started to knead it.

"Oh no, we can't have that," Gabrielle lightly moaned. "You know Babe, they're gonna get bigger."

"God help me," Daryl sighed as he slipped his hand under her shirt.

"So what else aren't you going to allow the boys to do?" she purred.

"There'd be no removing of clothing…like this." Daryl pulled her shirt up over her head and tossed it aside. "Or especially like this." This time he unsnapped her bra in the back. His right hand pushed the straps off one shoulder than the other and the bra was soon lying somewhere on the floor.

Daryl looked at Gabrielle and they both saw the desire and heat in each other's eyes. While they just looked at each other, Daryl's fingers continued to massage her breast before stopping as he took her distended nipple between his fingers. A gentle tug, became a firmer tweaking as he pulled and rubbed it between his rough fingers. Pleasure bordered on pain.

"Oh…yes," Gabrielle sighed. "Harder and...don't stop.

Daryl could play with his wife's breast for hours and had done so often in the past. He knew what she loved and how hard he could be. She always did like things a little bit rough.

"What else?" she panted. "What else can't they do?"

"This," he growled. "Do you want them to ever do this to our daughter?"

Daryl lowered his mouth to her breast and after licking around her areola he sucked her nipple into his mouth. His tongue, teeth, and lips taunted and teased her while his hand continued to caress her.

"No…No…those horny monsters will never touch her, but you…oh God Daryl you are making me so fucking wet!"

He didn't answer her but just stayed with his mouth latched onto her luscious breast. The thought of them getting even bigger made his already hard dick throb even more. How he had managed to live all these years without her was crazy. He never knew sex could be this good…this satisfying with someone he cared about. That he waited to find it with Gabrielle made their relationship even that much stronger. He could not imagine a life without her and he had almost screwed that up.

His jeans were getting too uncomfortable with the intense hard on he had, not to mention they were tight to begin with since they were Rick's. His mouth moved from her breast to her lips and he greedily took possession of her mouth. Their tongues fought for control as the kiss deepened even more. Gabrielle arched as his hand roughly massaged her breast and his mouth left her lips leaving a trail of hot kisses in its wake.

"Upstairs," he mumbled. He was so hot for her that he could take her right there on the sofa as he had done many times before, but this time he wanted the comfort of their bed.

Gabrielle didn't answer but reluctantly pulled herself out of his embrace to stand up. Daryl instantly joined her, but let his mouth and hands run all over her generous breasts one more time. Then he took her hand in his and led her towards the stairs. Halfway up, he stopped in his tracks. "We can still have sex, right? It won't hurt the baby?"

"Oh, we definitely can." Gabrielle leaned closer to him and whispered in his ear, "Fuck me, Daryl."

He loved it when she talked like that and he had them running up the rest of the stairs for their room. Daryl was taking his clothes off as fast as he could and Gabrielle was already naked since she was already half undressed. She crawled up on the bed and spread her legs for him as he wrestled to get his pants off. Daryl's eyes didn't leave her body for one second as he watched her slowly slide her hand down her body to her shaved mound. There her fingers played with herself, while she waited for Daryl to join her.

Gabrielle was fully aware of how he would react to her doing this…he loved it and typically it would lead to a crazed bout of hard sex, which was what she needed right then.

Daryl stood there completely naked with his hard cock standing straight up watching his wife. Here he was thinking he may have to take her slower than he wanted to be gentle with her and she was telling him the opposite. He was so hard that he knew he wouldn't last long, but if she wanted it hard and rough, then that's what she would get. Thank-fucking-God!

He crawled up on the bed, replacing her fingers with his. He watched Gabrielle close her eyes and sigh loudly as he let two fingers enter her. She was so slick that he knew she was ready for him. He used his thumb to rub her sensitive clit, which immediately had her moaning loudly.

Without stopping he positioned himself between her legs so without any warning he thrust himself deep inside of her. Gabrielle screamed in pleasure. Daryl continued to bury himself completely inside of her stroke after stroke.

When his gaze traveled back up her body, going over her bouncing breasts, he couldn't imagine wanting a woman more. Her gaze finally locked on his and she wrapped her legs around him.

Her eyes became narrow slits as the sensations that were starting to flow through her started to control her body. "Oh God," she simpered. "That already feels so fucking good."

"Just wait," he growled.

"No waiting. Please!" she begged him. No man had ever made her feel the way Daryl did. Every time with him was still incredible and she could never get enough of him.

He lifted her legs up so they were draped across his shoulders, giving him better access and leverage. His hips were moving him frantically in and out of her and the orgasm that he knew had been close before he even started began to take over.

Gabrielle felt two more wild thrusts before he spilled himself into her, that's when she let go of the thin hold she had on herself and they tumbled together into a strong tidal wave of passion. Their bodies trembling together as the electricity they could easily ignite hit every nerve ending they had. They collapsed together sweaty and exhausted, but completely sated.

Daryl lay on top of Gabrielle trying to catch his breath as she did the same. Once he slid out of her, he rolled off to the side and she cuddled up next to him. "I'm sorry I almost screwed us up," he said softly in his gruff voice. He planted a loving kiss on her forehead.

"We fixed it, with a little help, but promise me you won't run again. We need to face up to our problems and talk them out. Okay?"

"I'll do my best Princess, but you know I'm not good at talkin' so you gotta tell me when I'm fuckin' up."

Gabrielle laughed. "Don't worry, I have that covered no problem."

The two of them lay together intertwined as they talked about their future. Daryl was going to try to see if he could get off to go to her doctor's appointment with her. They discussed that as much as they loved their little house, it was not ideal for a family. They needed a room for the baby.

Gabrielle was surprised that when she suggested they buy this time and use the money in the bank she had from the sale of her condo that Daryl agreed. They were making plans to be a real family, something Daryl never thought he would have. The idea both scared him to death and excited him. He was ready. It took some doses of reality from both Rick and Gabrielle, but he finally saw the light.

As these new realizations flowed through him, he became aware that Gabrielle had fallen asleep in his arms. He had caused her so much stress and anguish last night that he doubted she had gotten any sleep at all. It was time to pamper his Princess as she was carrying his baby. There would be another Dixon in the world and this one was not going to be like any of the others. This child would be raised by loving parents and he would do his best to make sure they fulfilled any of their dreams. His had come true after all. He took a chance on love and maybe he and Gabrielle went around it the craziest way possible, but it worked. He was going to have the family he secretly always wanted, but never dared to have.

Thank God what happened in Vegas, did not stay in Vegas. He took the biggest chance of his lifetime and came out a winner. Who would have ever thought that a Dixon would come out on top? Daryl fell asleep next to his gorgeous pregnant wife happier than he ever thought possible. Life wasn't just good, it was fucking awesome!

* * *

 **Epilogue**

 **Five years later…**

Daryl pulled into the driveway of his four-bedroom home and parked his pickup. The Ford dealership he had worked at for years had given him a great deal on a used F-150 so it had room for the kids. He was now the lead mechanic there and there were rumors that when the service manager retired at end of the year, he was up for the job. Hard work and dedication had done him well.

He still rode his bike occasionally, but it was no longer his sole mode of transportation. Car seats don't actually fit on a motorcycle. He tried, much to Gabrielle's dismay with Tyler.

He walked quietly up the front steps and listened. He could hear his four-year-old son, Tyler chasing his two-year-old sister Madison throughout the house. As usual, the home was filled with lots of laughter.

"Okay, guys. Daddy's going to be home any minute and I asked you to pick up the toys, let's do it before he gets home," Gabrielle told her two children that were still running through the house laughing.

"Too late," Daryl said walking through the door. "He's here."

The two little rugrats screamed when they heard him and ran into the living room throwing themselves at him. He picked up one kid in each arm. "Were you guys good for your mommy today?" he asked giving them each a kiss.

"Yes Daddy," Tyler answered him seriously. "We picked up our toys."

"Now did you?" he laughed as the room was covered in toys of all kinds. "Maybe you should try again, Tyler. Show your sister how to do it, okay?"

Tyler shook his head yes.

"Will you help Ty, Maddie?"

His adorable daughter who was the spitting image of her mother, nodded that she understood. Daryl placed them both on the floor and told them to "get to it." Immediately they starting picking up discarded toys and putting them in the big toy box he had built for them.

"I've been trying to get them to do that all day," Gabrielle said as she wrapped her arms around his neck. "Why do they listen to you, but not me?"

"No idea Princess, but let's take advantage that they do listen to me…occasionally." He kissed his still gorgeous wife's lips and lingered. Her mouth easily opened in response to his and for a moment, they forgot they were not alone. That was until Maddie said, "Mommy, gotta pee."

"Damn it, "Gabrielle muttered under her breath causing Daryl to smile. "Gotta love potty training. C'mon baby girl, let's go pee."

Daryl went to the refrigerator and pulled out a beer. He sat down on the sofa watching his young son play with a toy motorcycle. Soon he'd get him out on his bike, he'd just have to do it when Gabrielle wasn't around otherwise she'd pitch a fit. Boys had to stick together.

He took a long pull from the bottle. He never imagined he would be living the life he was. He had a wife that loved him and still caused heads to turn after a couple of kids. He had two beautiful children that he couldn't imagine ever not having. He lived for those kids, which was a completely different feeling than he had initially. He never thought he would be a good father after being raised by one of the worst ones, but he was wrong. He was a damned good dad, even though he still was never going to let his little Maddie date. No way.

He drove a decent truck and they actually owned the house they lived in. Well in about twenty-five years they would own it once the mortgage was paid off. This was not the life he ever expected to have but thank God he did. He was one lucky man.

The End.

* * *

 **A/N - Thank you to everyone who has been reading not just _Taking a Chance_ , but any of my stories. I have enjoyed writing them so very much. I will continue to write, but I just don't have another story ready yet. I am working on a sequel to _Restless,_ tentatively titled _Blindsided_ , but that is not done yet. First time in almost a year, I didn't have another one ready to go. If you haven't heard, I don't post a story until it's completely written. Just one of my idiosyncrasies. Keep an eye out for it or even better follow me and you'll know when it's started. Honestly, it may be a month or two before it's done. **

**Thank you all for being a fan. See you soon.**

 **Walker Witch**


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